Roaring On the Wind
by Etcetera Kit
Summary: PRDT. A red ranger distress signal brings eight former red rangers to the home of Tommy Oliver. He needs their help to stop Mesogog. More old friends surface, but will it be enough in the end? AU. Complete.
1. the Memories Smolder

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**Author's Note:** This will be a Dino Thunder fic, as I stated in the summary, however, the first two chapters are set during 'Forever Red' and are slightly AU depending on how you view the timeline in that episode. This entire story will be slightly AU. I appreciate comments and constructive criticism. And please, please tell me if I have something that is 'past' cannon facts or technical terms that are wrong! Flames will be used to roast marshmallows. So let me know what you think-- should I continue or not? On with the story...

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter One: the Memories Smolder**

-October 2002-

The mission had been successful. For that much, he was grateful. He was also grateful that the other red rangers had joined the mission without so much as blinking an eye. The two red rangers not on Earth managed to arrive just when they were desperately needed. Then why did Tommy Oliver feel so depressed?

The trip back from the moon would only take a few hours if they used the maximum speed that the ship could (and they had when going to the moon.) On the return trip they had decided to take the ship at a lower speed, causing the trip to last overnight and into the next morning. That had required everyone to claim quarters. The only rooms made up were in the same wing and everyone had to share a room since there were not enough individual rooms made up. And now that he thought about it, it was only fair that they all share a room. There were nine of them on the ship (Aurico had opted to go straight back to Aquitar after the battle and had borrowed Leo's Jet Jammer.) The nine people on the ship translated into three to a room.

But no one was in their room now. Everyone was sitting around the round table in the Ready Room with several bowls of popcorn and lots of cans of soda. (The beverage of choice would have been beer, but none had been stocked on the ship. Andros had originally thought it was going to be a day mission and stocked the food accordingly. That meant nothing social like beer. How the popcorn got to be there no one really knew.)

He looked around the table, realizing that this would probably be the last time he saw many of these men. To his left sat Andros. He was the Red Space Ranger and was the only one of the group not originally from Earth—he was from KO 35. And he looked, as Cole had put it, like a Legolas wannabe. Tommy hadn't bothered to point out that Andros had looked like that long before Legolas and _the Lord of the Rings_ movies. It was probably better to let Cole have his illusions. Andros and his wife, Ashley, had settled in Angel Grove, where Ashley hailed from.

To the left of Andros sat Leo Corbett. Leo was the Lost Galaxy Red Ranger and had lived the past three years on the space colony, Terra Venture. However, when he was contacted about the mission, he and his wife, Kendrix, had decided to move back to Earth. She was supposed to take her Jet Jammer and meet them in the morning. Since they didn't have a house yet (oddly enough they had jobs), they were going to stay with Jason until they found a place. Since Jason lived in Galveston, Texas and they wanted to live in Seabrook, it made sense since Seabrook was ten minutes from Galveston.

Next to Leo was Carter Grayson. He was the Lightspeed Rescue Red Ranger and still lived in Mariner Bay on the East Coast where he had been a ranger. According to Leo and Andros, he was married to a woman named Dana and they had a son who was just over a year old. Dana had also just found out she was pregnant again. He still worked as a firefighter like he had when becoming a ranger although now he was something like second in command at the fire station. He had also freely admitted earlier to being captain of the basketball team in high school.

Those three had met when one set of rangers came to help another out. The Space Rangers had helped the Lost Galaxy Rangers defeat the Psycho Rangers once and for all. That had been how Andros and Leo met. A year later, the Lost Galaxy Rangers helped the Lightspeed Rescue Rangers rid the world of Trakeena for eternity. Consequently, Leo and Carter met. If Tommy was to assume things rationally, Carter and Andros met through Leo. They also made one of the trios of roommates.

Ironically enough the next three men around the table were the next trio of roommates—Cole Evans, TJ Johnson and Eric Myers. Cole was the current red ranger from a team called Wild Force. He was also the youngest of the group, causing some of the older members of the group to call him things like 'kid' and 'sport.' However, he just took it all in stride. Currently, he didn't have a girlfriend and he hailed from Turtle Cove. That city was not too far from Mariner Bay although Carter and Cole had never seen each other before in their lives. Cole also worked at a vet's office during the day helping with the animals and filing.

TJ Johnson had been the Turbo Red Ranger, the one who replaced him. Later, he became the Blue Space Ranger. He had known Andros, Leo and himself before ever agreeing to come on the mission. He had gone back to Angel Grove after the Space Rangers retired from being rangers. Tommy was fairly certain that he worked at a garage during the day, fulfilling his love of cars. Like Cole, he didn't have a girlfriend and had spent a lot of the trip to the moon reminiscing with Andros while Cole gazed at them openmouthed. TJ was also one of the only ones not to call Cole any of the diminutives.

Eric Myers completed that trio. What made him and Wes split up for the room assignments had Tommy baffled. Clearly, he and Wes were like brothers, they had even arrived together for the mission. He lived in Silver Hills where he remained a Silver Guardian. What Eric's past was had remained unclear. He had made it clear that he didn't have a girlfriend, giving those three something in common. He had been the Quantum Ranger, the sixth Time Force Ranger, and he had been invited on the mission since his uniform was black where Wes' was white and it was red.

Finally, there were the last trio of roomies, himself, Jason Scott and Wesley Collins. He didn't know much about Wes other than the fact that he was the Red Time Force Ranger, he lived in Silver Hills and worked as a Silver Guardian and he and Eric were the only Time Force Rangers from the present. According to Eric's somewhat cryptic remark, he was 'nursing a broken heart.' Tommy had no idea what that was supposed to mean and didn't really feel like grilling Wes about it. If he wanted to talk about it, he would. He and Jason were the two who would understand—they had pretty bitter break-ups in their past, girls they were still in love with, but the relationship was over. And there wasn't must he didn't know about Jason…

It was strange how they had split themselves. The three who happened to be married in one room… the three who were single in one room… and the three who were still in love with their ex-girlfriends in one room. Ironic…

"We've been talking about it and decided that we need a distress signal."

Tommy snapped to attention at the sound of Carter's voice. The Lightspeed Ranger was indicating Leo and Andros in addition to himself. A distress signal? What was he talking about?

"Why?" Cole asked.

"In case we need each other," Andros picked up the thread. "If there's an emergency and you need reinforcements or moral support or something."

"Or man power in a fight," Leo added.

"What kind of situations are we talking about here?" TJ asked. "I mean how trivial can it be to activate something like that?"

"As trivial as you want," Carter replied. "I mean if you just need a pick-me-up or if you need help for a certain task or want guests at a ceremony or something…" He paused. "Or if your wife is having her first baby," he added blandly. Andros flushed slightly. Tommy stared at him for a minute, wondering if there was something he needed to share with the group.

They were all silent for a moment. Eric nodded. "I like it," he said. "It'd be a good support system outside your normal realm of companions."

"But how would we make it work practically?" Wes countered.

"Already thought of that," Andros said. Tommy noticed that the color in his cheeks had subsided for now.

"We'd have a phone tree," Leo offered.

Carter groaned. "Don't say 'phone tree.' It sounds too much like a PTA term and my son isn't old enough for that yet!"

"Okay, phone circle," Leo amended.

Tommy grinned. Within five minutes, they had the 'phone circle' finalized and had exchanged phone numbers and programmed them into their cell phones. The circle was actually fairly simple. It could start anywhere, but the person who started it would know when the message got to everyone when the person above them called. And if any of them remembered their Power Rangers history, the order the circle went in was dead easy to remember. First on the list was Jason, followed by Tommy. After Tommy came TJ then Andros. Andros then called Leo who passed the message onto Carter. From Carter, it went to Wes then Eric and finally, Cole. If Jason activated the circle, then Cole called Jason and let him know the message got through.

After more time of talking and remembering old days, the popcorn bowls were finally empty and they all decided to turn in for the night. As Tommy headed down the corridor to his room, he suddenly didn't feel so depressed. They all wanted to keep in touch. And that could mean all the difference in the world.

* * *

Andros lay on his stomach on his bed, pretending to read a book. However, he was really eavesdropping on Carter and the conversation via cell phone he was having with his wife. A booster signal on the ship allowed their cell phones to work from the ship. Leo was sitting on the top bunk, not even trying to disguise the fact that he was listening in.

The rooms they were using were designed for three people. One bed was pushed up against the wall next to the door, while a bunk bed was on the wall opposite the door. A dresser was next to the bunk bed—no closet since officers on space missions had to pack light. A tiny bathroom was in the corner between the beds, barely the size of a small closet, the thing had a shower, toilet and sink crammed in there and hidden by a sliding door.

The agitated conversation Carter was having with his wife out in the hallway right outside their door was nothing like the subdued conversation Leo had had with his wife just minutes earlier. Andros had talked to Ashley before the impromptu 'party' in the Ready Room.

"No! Dana… we will be in tomorrow morning and the group is going out to lunch before we head home… Yes, our spouses are invited… I told you before I left that this mission could take this long… No, there are no women on the ship… DANA! Just be at the base at ten-thirty tomorrow morning… ask the girls next door, Cory likes them… Okay… I love you too… Bye."

Leo was now shaking with silent laughter. Andros felt inclined to smile himself. Carter walked back into the room, looking like he wanted to throw his cell phone at the wall. The firefighter ended up settling for falling onto his bed and placing a well-aimed punch into his pillow.

"Problems in paradise?" Leo asked flippantly.

"I hate it when she's pregnant!" Carter muttered. "She goes neurotic!"

"What happened?" Andros asked, mildly interested now.

"Oh, the usual- 'you didn't tell me the mission could last this long' when I distinctly remember that I did. Then the whole 'are there other women on the ship' and then 'I can't find a sitter for Cory that fast." Carter growled. "Just ask the girls next door! Those girls always want money and argue over who's going to come babysit!"

"The girls next door?" Andros questioned.

"My next door neighbors are an older couple with five daughters who range in age from eleven to seventeen. And Cory adores those girls."

"So, no problem," Leo stated.

"Not to a pregnant woman."

Leo howled with laughter. Carter punched the bottom of the top bunk, causing Leo to stop laughing and hang onto the side rail for dear life. That antic made Andros start laughing, although Carter misplaced the reason for his laughter.

"Just you two wait," he muttered. "Sooner or later, you guys will have kids too and won't be laughing at me about this! You'll know it's nothing to laugh about!"

"I think I'll find out sooner," Andros replied softly.

That froze his roommates. Carter had been about to punch the bottom of the top bunk again and Leo had been looking like he was seriously regretting choosing the top bunk because Carter was making it uncomfortable.

"Ashley's pregnant?" Leo asked.

Andros nodded. "How far along is she?" Carter added.

"About four months,"

"Why the hell didn't you tell us!" Leo said loudly, jumping easily out of the top bunk and launching himself on Andros, succeeding in getting him a headlock.

"Congrats, man!" Carter added.

"Get off me!" Andros yelled at Leo, who backed off, but didn't get back in bed.

"I thought something was up," Carter said shaking a finger at Andros. "But I wasn't sure what so I kept my mouth shut."

"Yeah well…" Andros said, suddenly feeling stupid for not being able to tell his friends sooner. "I think we need to get to sleep."

Leo looked down at his wrist, like he once had a watch and lost it recently. "No watch," he shrugged.

Carter looked down at his watch. "It's almost one a.m." He gave Leo a withering look. "You wouldn't have your head if it wasn't attached to your shoulders!"

"Hey!" Leo protested. "I left it on Terra Venture. Kendrix is supposed to bring it tomorrow."

"Yeah, she runs your life," Andros said under his breath.

Leo glared at him as he vaulted back into the top bunk. "She does not."

"Right," Andros muttered and reached for the manual light switch. He flipped it and the room was immersed in darkness.

"Stop kicking my bed," Leo groaned.

"Stop rolling over and making the bunk shake," Carter replied.

"Good night guys!" Andros said loudly.

Silence fell over the room. Soon the only sound was of the three of them breathing evenly.

* * *

Cole snuggled into the blankets on his top bunk of the room he, TJ and Eric shared. Eric was in the bottom bunk below him and TJ was in the other bed across the room. He didn't know about the others, but he still had way too much adrenaline pumping through his body to sleep. They had decided about ten minutes after getting to their room to turn in for the night. However, he still found himself tossing and turning, trying to sleep. It was fruitless. He just wasn't tired yet and he always had trouble sleeping in a strange place.

"Stop turning so much," came Eric's sleepy voice from somewhere below him. "You're making the whole bunk shake."

"Sorry. I can't sleep," Cole apologized.

"What are you guys doing still up?" TJ asked groggily.

"Cole can't sleep," Eric answered.

"Count backwards from 1000," TJ suggested. "Always put me right to sleep when I couldn't back in grade school."

"I don't know if he's smart enough for that."

"Hey!" Cole grabbed his pillow and took a swing at Eric, missing completely in the dark.

"Better not do that again, I'll steal your pillow," Eric threatened. "I could use another pillow too,"

Cole decided that it would be in his best interest to keep his pillow confined to his bed since he rather liked the idea of keeping it and not surrendering it to Eric.

"What's on your mind, kid?" Eric asked.

"Nothing," he lied.

"Oh come on, there must be something if you can't sleep."

"I don't know… I was just thinking… will I ever be able to be as good a ranger as all of you guys were?"

Eric snorted. "Kid, all of us had our moments where we were the worst rangers ever invented and had to have the rest of our team put us in line."

"Being the red ranger isn't about being in charge," TJ added. "Sure you're a leader, but there's a big difference between being a leader and being in charge. Just lead to the best of your ability and the others will respect you for that."

"It's just so hard sometimes."

"Kid, nothing in life worth having is easy."

* * *

Tommy was wondering how he somehow ended up with the top bunk. He supposed that being called 'the greatest ranger ever' didn't give him any advantage when it came to claiming beds. Wes had called the bed by the door and Jason had grabbed the bottom bunk before he even had time to open his mouth. The three of them had started talking after they settled into their beds, but had not yet turned out the lights. Currently, the conversation was at the topic of girlfriends.

"Me and Emily broke up a couple years ago," Jason was saying. "I never found anyone after her and here I am today."

"Living the life of a beach bum," Tommy muttered.

"You should see me crush beer cans on my head," Jason declared proudly.

"It wasn't a compliment."

Wes just laughed. Tommy was inclined to agree with him. Jason was smarter than his persona gave him credit for.

"How about you, bro?" Jason asked, hitting the bottom of the top bunk to indicate that he meant Tommy to go next.

Tommy felt like glaring at him. "Me and Kat broke up back in high school."

"Anyone in college? I hear you spend a lot of time with a tech girl," Jason wheedled.

"No!"

"That's all right," Jason shrugged. "You were never really in love with Kat, you just subbed her for Kimberly when she dumped you. You're still in love with Kim."

Wes perked up. "Who's Kimberly?" he asked.

"My girlfriend from high school," Tommy answered sullenly, realizing that the conversation was heading to a place he didn't want to go. "She went off to the Pan Globals and wrote me a letter, saying it was over."

"Would it make you feel any better to know she's still in love with you?"

Tommy nearly fell off the top bunk. What in the world was Jason saying? Kimberly, the one woman he had been madly in love and continued to love even after she dumped him and he had no reason to, still harbored feelings for him. He needed to sort this out. Torn between a need to get the conversation off of him and a need to grill Jason, he chose the former.

"So how about you, Wes? Any old flames?"

Wes sighed. "Yes. Jen… she was the Pink Time Force Ranger… she had been engaged to one of my future descendents. He helped them get back to the proper time and she dumped him for me. She had thought he was dead… I made her go back to her correct time. She couldn't stay here…"

"But she would have," Jason said softly.

"Yes," Wes replied hoarsely. "She would have."

"Maybe you can go back and get her?" Tommy suggested.

"No." He shook his head. "I can't. And if I could, I wouldn't. She doesn't belong in our time and I don't belong in hers." He paused. "I just wish I could talk to her somehow."

"I guess they don't send snail mail forward in time," Jason replied.

Wes gave a mournful laugh. "I wish."

"Well," Jason said in a falsely hearty voice. "I think this conversation needs to rest for a while before we bring it up again."

Tommy and Wes agreed and they all crawled into their beds. Wes turned off the manual light switch and the room became dark.

_Kimberly… why did you break up with me if you still loved me? It didn't have to end like that. I would not have cheated on you with Kat, no matter how much she hit on me. I had the strength to wait for you, you know that. Why? I loved you so much and suddenly it didn't seem to matter. Was there even another guy like you said in that damn letter! Why do I still love you when I know I shouldn't?_

He didn't know how long it had been when he heard Jason's even breathing, indicating that he was asleep. There was no noise coming from the direction of Wes. He took some small comfort in knowing that Wes couldn't sleep either. 

_To Be Continued..._


	2. After the Fire

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**Author's Note: **Here ends the chapters set during 'Forever Red.' After this, everything will be set during Dino Thunder. I also want to make a disclaimer regarding some psychology Cole will be talking about during the chapter-- I don't know if he is right or not, it is just an opinion that sounds good. Thanks for the reviews-- I do take suggestions into serious consideration. So let me know what you think-- good, bad or indifferent?

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Two: After the Fire**

-the Next Morning-

The depressed feeling came back tenfold the next morning when Tommy woke up earlier than he had to and realized that this was their last day together. He glanced at his watch. It was six-thirty. No one had to be up until at least eight depending on how long people took in the shower and whatnot. He sat up and saw that Wes was no longer in bed. There was no noise coming from the bathroom, so Tommy assumed he had gone elsewhere.

There was no point in remaining in bed. He wasn't going back to sleep. He jumped off the top bunk lightly and padded out of the room. His attire was decent enough for being on a ship full of men—pajama pants and a wife beater. Being barefoot wasn't a concern either since Tommy couldn't imagine what would be on the ground that could injure a body. Once in the hallway he could smell coffee coming from the direction of the kitchen… it probably had a fancy name used in the military, but at this early hour, Tommy wasn't recalling it.

The light was on in the kitchen. Tommy walked in. Wes and Cole were sitting at the small table in there with mugs of coffee. Both were still in their pajamas. In Cole's case it was a pair of lurid green shorts with smiley faces and red tank top. For Wes, it was a pair of pajama pants and athletics' t-shirt from high school.

"Morning," Wes greeted him.

Tommy nodded at him as he headed straight for the pot of coffee. He grabbed a mug from the stack next to the coffee maker and poured himself a mug. Sinking into a chair at the table, he took a sip of coffee.

"Instant human, just add coffee," Tommy said flippantly.

Wes and Cole grinned. "Couldn't sleep well?" Cole asked.

"Something like that," he replied. He and Wes exchanged knowing glances.

"There's some breakfast-like food in here if we had a mind to fix it," Wes said. He looked like the only thing keeping him awake was the coffee. But then again, how many people truly were 'morning people'? True, he'd rather be up early than late, but it didn't mean he functioned well in the morning.

Cole made a face at the mention of food. "Is everyone else still asleep?" Tommy asked as he nursed his cup of coffee.

"I guess so," Cole answered. "If they are up, they aren't making any noise. I know TJ and Eric are still asleep and I didn't hear any noise from Leo, Carter and Andros' room."

"Jason's still asleep like a foot," he added. And it was typical of Jason. The man could sleep through an earthquake. Tommy was pretty sure the only time he had had trouble sleeping was when Rita used the Crystal of Nightmares to manipulate the original five rangers' dreams. And Jason woke up at whatever time he needed to without an alarm clock.

"If I was to understand Carter correctly, Leo sleeps like a foot too," Wes added to the picture of people who slept through everything. "He also said something about it being dangerous to wake Leo up."

Cole laughed. "He probably has a reflex when he sleeps where he hits people who try to touch him. I'd recommend an air horn for people like that. Then you don't get hurt."

"Is that biological?" Tommy asked with a smile.

The humor immediately left Cole's face. "I think it's learned. I read somewhere that people who do that feel like they have to be on guard all the time. And they simply learned to strike out in their sleep rather than wake up."

"Some kind of trauma?"

Cole shrugged. "I wouldn't ever want to question someone about that."

Wes cleared his throat. "You won't have any trouble getting Eric out of bed. All you have to do is call his name and he wakes up."

"Jason too." Tommy paused. "I don't know about any of the others."

"If Carter's a firefighter, I'd guess that he wakes up to anything," Cole suggested. "I mean firefighters have to be on call all the time."

"Just take away TJ's blankets."

The three of them turned around to see Andros' standing in the doorway with a grin on his face. He, unlike them, was already showered and dressed. He strode over to the coffee pot and poured himself a mug. Tommy glanced down at his watch. It was just past seven.

"That works?" Cole asked.

Andros laughed. "Surprisingly yes. He and Carlos shared quarters on our ship and Carlos learned to take away his blankets to get him out of bed." He paused. "Carter's in the shower and I don't want to attempt to wake Leo up for at least another hour. His wife is due at nine, so he needs to get up at eight-forty-five."

"He gets ready that fast?" Wes said with some surprise.

"I don't question it. All I know is that he hates mornings with a passion."

"Well, that leaves four people in bed still," Wes calculated quickly.

"Jason will be up as soon as he realizes he's alone."

They all laughed. Andros pulled up a chair at the table. Well, that answered the question about who did mornings better than some. It looked like Eric, TJ, Jason and Leo got the honor of being the non-morning people. They lapsed into a comfortable silence. It was then that Tommy realized Andros wasn't wearing his space uniform. He was clad in a black wife beater with blue jeans and a red flannel shirt. Andros leaned back in his chair and Tommy caught a glimpse of his black flip-flops. Must be casual day. He couldn't ascertain what any of the rest of them would be wearing since they were still wearing their pajamas.

Wes finished off his coffee and stood up. "Well, I'll see you guys in a bit. I need to go get dressed and whatnot."

Tommy nodded at him. "Hurry up. I still need to get in there."

Wes batted his eyelashes. "I'll be out of the shower in less than one hour, for sure!"

Tommy gave him a withering glance. Wes just grinned and headed out of the room. He glanced back up at Andros and realized that his hair was in a simple ponytail. Must really be casual day. Tommy figured he needed to learn to be more observant. He and Cole finished their coffee at the same time and stood up.

"I've got to go throw Wes out of the shower," he said. Cole and Andros laughed.

"I have to beat everyone else to the shower," Cole countered.

"I should be in the control room helping Alpha," Andros added to the things they all needed to be doing.

Tommy just laughed as he and Cole left the room. Lunch would certainly be interesting today if nothing else.

* * *

Carter and Andros stood in their room, both unwilling to get Leo out of bed. It was eight-forty and if they didn't wake him up soon, he would still be asleep when his wife got to the ship. Carter couldn't for the life of him fathom how he slept through all the noise that had reigned on the ship since everyone had gotten out of bed. Especially since Cole had been singing some strange African jungle song loudly out in the hallway not five minutes ago. When Cory had been younger, he used to wake up to his crying before Dana.

"Want me to wake him up?"

They both turned to Cole stopped at their open door out in the hallway. He had obviously gotten dressed since the last time Carter saw him as he was wearing a red tank top, his vest and a pair of black soccer shorts with flip-flops. Carter waved him in. "Be our guest," he replied to the younger man's question.

Cole nodded and stepped into the room, grinning manically. Instead of just calling Leo's name or shaking him like most normal people would have done, Cole kicked off his flip-flops and climbed up into Leo's bed. Carter and Andros stared at each other openmouthed. Cole was asking to get thrown out of the bunk.

The Wild Force Ranger knelt next to Leo and grasped both his shoulders. The next thing they knew, Cole was shaking Leo awake violently.

"Wha-what?" Leo asked, trying to sit up. He looked at Cole and blinked a few times. "What the hell are you doing in my bed?" he asked.

"Waking you up," Cole replied nonchalantly.

"GET OUT!!" Leo yelled, trying to push Cole out of the bunk bed. However, it didn't quite work because when Cole started to fall out of the bed, he grabbed Leo and took him with him. They landed on the floor with a dull 'thud.'

Cole tried to scramble away from Leo, but was hindered by the fact that the blankets from the top bunk had come with them from the fall. Leo managed to get Cole in a headlock and Carter felt like laughing when Cole realized he was stuck. Leo was stronger. Leo let Cole go and flopped down onto the floor. "What time is it?" he asked.

"Eight forty-five," Andros replied.

"SHIT!" Leo yelled and jumped up off the floor and disappeared into the bathroom. A few seconds later they heard the shower come on. Cole started crawling around on the floor trying to find his flip-flops.

"Thanks," Andros said in the general direction of Cole.

Cole located his flip-flops and quickly put them on. "You're welcome," he replied scrambling to his feet.

"Did Leo just get out of bed?"

They turned to see Kendrix Corbett standing in the doorway. Her blonde hair was pulled back in a ponytail and she was wearing a light pink tank top and jean shorts.

"Yeah," Carter replied, running a hand through his hair.

"Are you Kendrix?" Cole asked. When she nodded, he grinned and offered her his hand. "Hi! I'm Cole."

Kendrix laughed and shook his hand. "Nice to meet you." After she shook Cole's hand, she gave Carter and Andros hugs. "It's great to see you guys again. I guess we won't get to see much of each other since we're spread all over the country."

Carter shrugged. "You never know."

"I just can't believe that Leo is just now in the shower." She paused. "Oh wait… I can believe that because he does it all the time."

They all laughed. For the first time since his rather interesting phone conversation with Dana last night, he was looking forward to seeing her.

* * *

Tommy looked at the faces around the table. Everyone appeared to be enjoying themselves and there was not a shortage of stories to share. They had landed on time and a small party had been there to greet them—well, two people, Ashley and Dana. It had taken them no time to find a restaurant close to the base where they landed the ship. Between the Lightspeed Rescue Hummer and the Suburban that Wes and Eric came in, there was more than enough transportation for everyone.

"So is Cory short for something?" Cole was asking Carter and Dana about their son.

At the question, Leo groaned and buried his face in his arms. Kendrix laughed, apparently also knowing where the question was headed and wrapped her arm around Leo's shoulders.

Carter cleared his throat and looked to Dana. She had a look on her face that clearly said it was his problem to explain it. "It's short for Corbett."

Understanding dawned on Cole's face. Leo poked Carter in the shoulder. "I told him not to do it!" he said with a note of pride mixed with horror in his voice.

"What?" Carter asked. "I asked you if we could name him 'Leo' and you said no. So we named him Corbett instead."

"You should be proud of that," Wes said, shoving Leo in the side.

"He's also Cory's godfather," Dana added.

"You don't have to tell the world that," Leo grumbled. Kendrix moved her arm from around his shoulders and smacked him in the back of the head. "Ow!" Leo exclaimed, sitting up and rubbing the back of his head. "What'd you do that for?"

"You need an attitude adjustment," Kendrix stated.

"Don't worry about it," Carter replied. "He's just embarrassed."

Tommy found it amusing that Cole was so fascinated by the red rangers who were married. He supposed that for someone as young as Cole, marriage and a family were things that seemed a long way into the future. He could recall a time in his life when he had dreamed of marrying Kimberly and having children with her. He had been going to own his own dojo and they were going to live in a house near it. All his kids were going to be great at martial arts or be great gymnasts… he sighed. He had put those dreams to rest a long time ago.

He glanced at Andros and Ashley across the table from him. Ashley was obviously pregnant, but wasn't due for some time. It was also obvious, to Tommy anyways, that this was their first child because Ashley was listening to every little thing Dana said about pregnancy with rapt attention. For some reason, it made him feel old. Andros and Ashley looked so… young. Everyone sitting around the table looked young. And in reality, none of them were that old. Then why did he feel so old and tired?

Maybe it was because the rest of them seemed so happy with their lot. Andros, Leo and Carter were all happily married and starting families. Jason was content running and owning that surf shop in Galveston and crushing beer cans on his forehead. Wes, despite the broken heart, and Eric seemed perfectly happy as Silver Guardians. Not much could replace TJ's love of old cars and Cole was still running on the high one always got from being a ranger.

He knew he had no reason not to be contented. His parents had put up with the year after high school he spent racing cars with his uncle. Then they happily helped finance his undergraduate work at UCLA. They were ecstatic when he went on to the Master's program and then to the Ph.D. program. What they didn't know is that he had earned his teacher's certification during his undergraduate work. If he wasn't going to make a living teaching karate, then maybe he could make a living teaching something else. He was currently in the Ph.D. program and scared of the upcoming project he would soon leave for. As much as he liked Anton Mercer and Terrence Smith, he wasn't looking forward the prospect of spending extended amounts of time with them on an island. It wasn't the work—it was the people. If he had to spend a long time on an island with the red rangers, then his outlook on it would have been much more positive.

And the tech girl, as Jason so nicely called her, who had helped him through all this turned out to be one of his closest friends since high school graduation. Hayley had been there for him since undergraduate school and had made it clear that even if she was working for big technology now she would still be there for him. He loved Hayley like a sister he never had, but still, he wished that the person always there for him was Kim. He missed her. It was like a chronic ache in his chest that was never going to leave. Hayley had realized a long time ago that he was still in love with Kim and would never pursue a relationship with her. For that much, he was thankful.

But was this what he really wanted?

He felt like throwing away the thousands he had spent on his education and moving to Galveston with Jason where he could sit on a beach and crush beer cans on his forehead. Did he really want that either? He sighed. He didn't know what he wanted anymore. Things had gotten complicated as the years marched on in their terrible dance. He remembered Billy coming back from Aquitar and finding out about his and Trini's child, Mary Anne. He remembered when they came to UCLA with Mary Anne… he remembered Trini's death and Susie's birth. He remembered Joanna and Chris, the cousins who had been he and Hayley's roommates in undergraduate school. He remembered the relationship Billy and Joanna had after Trini died. He remembered when Billy and his daughters went to Hawaii and Joanna went to Reefside. He remembered when Chris went back to Texas to inherit the family ranch.

It was odd, as close as he and Jason had been, he and Billy grew even closer when they had both been at UCLA together. There was much more to Billy and his warped family than anyone could have previously guessed. He wanted to know what finally cracked Billy all those years ago when he went to Hawaii. Now he was lucky if he got a Christmas card from the original Blue Ranger.

Kimberly, Billy, Joanna, Chris… where had all the people he would have walked through fire for gone? He looked around the table once more, realizing that he would have bled for anyone at this table including their children and spouses. Maybe that was why he felt so depressed about leaving them. He felt like he had found a group of people akin to the original team of rangers back in high school and the group he had forged in college.

"You okay?"

He was brought out of his reverie by the sound of Eric's voice. He turned to Eric and nodded in the affirmative. "I was just thinking."

"Must have been some pretty serious thinking from the look on your face." How did Eric do that? Cole had said something on the way to the restaurant about Eric being able to read people in the dark. Apparently, Eric had hit on something Cole was thinking about after that particular trio of roomies had gone to bed last night.

"Yeah," he conceded. "I was wondering what happened to some other groups like this one that I had been a part of."

"It's amazing how well saving the Earth brings people together." Eric paused. "You have a girl in any of those groups?"

Tommy didn't bother to feel shocked that Eric had picked up on that. "My first girlfriend was in the first group. I watched my best friend's wife die in the second group and watched him botch a relationship about a year after that." He paused. "Well, I guess my best friend and his wife were in the first group too, but we weren't close back then."

Eric shook his head slowly. "That's rough."

He knew that already. Everyone else was laughing at something Cole had just said and he forced a smile. He did not want to leave this group so soon. They had developed an odd dynamic in the short time they had been together. Rather than everyone trying to prove that they had been the best red ranger and their particular power team had been the best, everyone was trying to downplay all of his achievements. Oh, there had been some moments of boasting, but that had been about things that everyone already knew. Saving two worlds, discovering new galaxies, changing history… everyone already knew those things. It was only necessary at first to boast, then everyone scrambled for connections with others.

The most recent example was the fact that Leo didn't want Carter to tell everyone that his son had been named after him. Most of them would not have made the connection between 'Cory' and 'Corbett' had Carter not told them. The bond between Leo, Carter and Andros was obvious. Tommy almost wanted to ask what Andros and Ashley were thinking of naming their first or more, who the child would be named after. The same applied to Carter and Dana's second.

Everyone seemed to have come out of this with new circles of friends. He watched as Eric laughed at something Cole said and ruffled his hair playfully, like Cole was a silly younger cousin or nephew rather than the current red ranger. TJ was on the other side of Cole, just laughing at their antics. Those three had grown close in a short period of time. He looked across the table to Wes and then next to him to Jason. The bond that had been between him and Jason was not as strong as it had been, but it was there. And Wes was another kindred spirit who understood about the bitter break-ups and still being in love with a girl long after the relationship was over.

All too soon, desert was over and the check came. There was some haggling over who owed what, but that was mostly all in good fun. Everyone stood up and piled back into the cars they came in—he was squeezed into the Lightspeed Rescue Hummer with Carter, Dana, Cole, TJ and Eric. They got back to the base and said their goodbyes, everyone promising to keep in touch because no one knew how long it would be before they saw one another. Carter and Dana gave Cole a ride back to Turtle Cove. Eric and Wes headed back for Silver Hills. TJ, Andros and Ashley were bound for Angel Grove. Jason, Leo and Kendrix were going to Galveston.

As Tommy walked to his own car, heading back to UCLA, he couldn't help but wonder if the distress signal would ever be used. 

_To Be Continued..._


	3. the Pride You Hide

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Three: the Pride You Hide**

-Two Years Later-

TJ Johnson was blasted out of bed much earlier than he would have liked on a Saturday morning by the sound of the phone ringing. He hit the alarm clock first, thinking that he accidentally set it yesterday, forgetting it was Friday. When that didn't stop the noise, it took him a minute to realize that it was the phone. He located the cordless phone on the floor by his bed and pressed the 'talk' button.

"Hello?" he said. His voice croaked like a frog. He caught a glimpse of the clock. It was seven-thirty in the morning, much earlier than he wanted to be up on Saturday.

At the sound of the voice on the other end of the line, he fell out of bed.

* * *

There was a strange buzzing noise going on somewhere far away. Andros squeezed his eyes shut, trying to ascertain what the noise was without fully waking up. It was still before eight a.m. and he considered that early, probably because Brian tended to wake up around eight… He felt Ashley shift beside him. She was almost nine months pregnant with their second child—she was due any day now.

"It's the phone, Andros," she said sleepily.

He groaned and picked up the phone on the nightstand. "Hello?" he said in a sleepy voice. He wanted to go back to sleep, because whenever Brian got up was when Ashley got up and she always made him get up.

"Andros? That you? This is TJ."

"Yeah," he mumbled, pushing himself into a semi-sitting position against the headboard of the bed. This had better be good because he was going to kill TJ if it wasn't.

"You will not believe who I just talked to…"

* * *

The phone rang. Leo Corbett groaned as Kendrix snuggled closer to him to drown out the noise. He looked at the clock. Granted, it was almost ten and he needed to be out of bed anyways, but that didn't stop him from being irritated at the caller. He picked up the cordless phone from the nightstand—it was the phone he detested because it was hot pink and Kendrix had bought it with the express purpose of annoying him.

"What?" he said into the phone. Kendrix smacked him.

"Leo? It's Andros. You are not going to believe this…"

Leo sat bolt right up in bed when Andros explained what was going on.

* * *

Someone was shaking him. Carter Grayson groaned. There had been a fire in an apartment complex late last night and every man the fire station had had been pulled out to deal with it. Consequently he hadn't gotten in until almost four o'clock in the morning. He glanced at the clock. That explained why he was still sleeping at almost eleven in the morning. Someone shook him again. He turned onto his back to see Dana standing over him with the cordless phone.

"Phone's for you," Dana said.

God, he must have been exhausted because he hadn't even heard the phone ring. "Who is it?" he asked, his voice hoarse from all the yelling of orders last night.

"Leo," she replied.

Carter suddenly felt wide awake. He could hear the noise in the background of Cory and Heather in the backyard doing who knows what. He took the phone from Dana and she left the room. "Hello?" he said into the phone.

"Carter! I just got the weirdest call from Andros…"

* * *

The phone was ringing. It rang once. Wesley Collins growled and put his pillow over his head. He didn't care if he should have been up at nine in the morning, he didn't want to answer it. The phone rang a second time. Two more rings and the answering machine would pick it and he could see if the person was worth talking to. It rang a third time. In the middle of the fourth ring, he lost all stubbornness regarding not answering the phone and picked it up.

"Hello?" he said into the phone, knowing he sounded mad.

"Wes? Carter here."

"What's going on?" Wes asked, stifling a yawn.

For the first time in his life, Wes completely woke up without the aide of coffee after listening to what Carter had to tell him.

* * *

Eric Myers woke up to his cell phone ringing. Damn. He had forgotten to turn it off before he went to bed last night. And it was the ring tone he had set it for when Wes called—the Indiana Jones' Theme. What on earth did Wes want this early in the morning? He picked the cell phone up off his night stand and pressed the correct button to answer it.

"What, Wes?" he asked.

"Carter just called me."

"Firefighter Carter?"

"Yeah. Listen to this…"

* * *

Cole Evans started awake as the phone rang. He looked at the clock on his dresser. Okay, so it was eleven and he needed to be up anyways. He searched around on the floor by his bed for the cordless phone. He was pretty sure he had dragged it in here last night. On the third ring he located it under a pile of dirty laundry. He didn't want to think about how it got there. He didn't even get to say 'hello' when he answered the phone.

"Mornin' Kid," came Eric's voice over the line. "Start packing. Carter is picking you up in half an hour so you guys can be on the next flight to Reefside and you also need to call Jason."

"Wha-what?"

"You heard me. Doctor Oliver activated the distress signal. We are all congregating in Reefside by tonight to see what the trouble is. Wes has taken care of all the travel arrangements. We'll worry about hotels and stuff when we get there."

Cole felt overwhelmed. The last time someone had activated the distress signal was when Ashley had Brian. And it hadn't been Andros who activated it—it had been TJ because he had been afraid that Andros was going to have a heart attack. TJ had just called Leo so it would be a surprise for Andros.

"Just pack an overnight bag, call Jason and sit in front of your apartment complex and wait for Carter, all right?" Eric hung up the phone. Cole stared at the phone for a moment before throwing it on the bed and running into the living room to get his cell phone where he had Jason's number programmed in.

* * *

Jason Scott had happily been in the mountains with Shania Twain when the phone rang. After being unpleasantly jolted from his dream, he looked at the clock. It was ten. He probably should be up anyways to go see how Joey was handling opening the surf shop by himself. He picked up the phone.

"Talk to me."

"It's Cole. We all need to be in Reefside by tonight…"

* * *

While most of the former red rangers were being jolted out of pleasant sleeps by urgent phone calls, the one who had activated the phone circle sat in front of the control panel in his basement, wondering how the past two years had brought him to this. Tommy Oliver had never intended to become the mentor for the newest team of Power Rangers—Dino Thunder. He had found the Dino-Gems during that disastrous island research with Anton Mercer and had hidden them in case they were ever needed. He recognized their power, what they could do. He had Hayley make the morphers just in case. But he had never intended to use any of it.

What no one except for him and Hayley knew was that there were more than the five Dino-Gems. There were nine. Tommy had been watching all of them surface over the past few months. First, Conner McKnight, Kira Ford and Ethan James found the red, yellow and blue gems during that fateful detention the first day of school. Mesogog—a half dinosaur, half man whose ultimate goal was to turn Earth back to its prehistoric roots when dinosaurs reigned and who happened to be the evil this team was fighting—had found the black gem encased in some kind of crystal. Tommy had freed it and used the Black Dino Morpher to become to Black Ranger. Mesogog then found the white gem and used it to turn Trent Fernandez into an evil White Ranger.

Trent was now on their side. No one was quite sure what had brought that change about, but they were grateful for the extra help.

He had not planned on being stuck in his suit. His first battle with the evil White Ranger had left him encased in amber. When he got out of the amber, he had been unable to power down. That had left him in a huge mess. First of all, he was a science teacher at the local high school—Reefside High. He needed someone to take over his classes while he feigned a long term illness as he had told the principal. The principal, in her normal mode of being as unpleasant as possible, had Anton Mercer take over. According to the other Rangers, who had also happened to be students in his classes, Mercer had been out lately and the rumor was that Principal Randall was looking for a replacement.

He wished he wasn't stuck in his suit. Then most of the problems that plagued him would not be and much of his life would be easier. He might be able to answer the phone like a normal person or eat breakfast. His classes would be taught to his specifications and he wouldn't have to glean what he could from Conner, Ethan, Kira and Trent.

The phone rang upstairs. He sighed. He punched a few buttons on the control panel and a speaker phone came up in the lab.

"Hello?" he said into the speaker.

"Hey, bro, it's Jason. Just wanted to let you know that the message got through."

"Good," he said mournfully.

"You don't sound too happy about it."

"You'll see," he said simply and disconnected. However, the phone started to ring again immediately afterwards. He punched the buttons again.

"Hello?"

"Uh, hi. Is this Dr. Thomas Oliver?"

The voice sounded vaguely familiar, but Tommy couldn't place it. "Yes."

"Uh, it's Billy. I'm taking over your classes at Reefside and wanted to see what you were doing with the curriculum."

Tommy choked inside his helmet. He had not spoken to Billy in years aside from Christmas cards and here the man was, talking to him on the phone like nothing had happened at all. Since when was Billy a teacher? Last time Tommy checked, Billy had been working in some lab in Hawaii and, per Aisha who kept in pretty good contact with him, had gone onto the University of Hawaii to work on his Ph.D. What the Ph.D. was in she didn't say. All Tommy knew was that he had an M.S. in Physics from UCLA and he had done that in a ridiculously short period of time—six years as opposed to the eight that it took most.

"Are you still there?"

Tommy snapped to attention. "Yeah… I just wasn't expecting to hear from you after all this time."

Billy cleared his throat nervously. "I know it's been a while-"

"A while? Hell, Billy, you stopped talking to all of us when you went to Hawaii! All I've gotten from you in years is a Christmas card and now you're talking to me like nothing happened?" He sighed. "There's a lot you need to come clean about."

"I know, I know. Look can I meet you somewhere for coffee or something?"

Tommy was about to agree when he remembered that he was stuck in his suit. "I-I can't," he stammered. What kind of excuse could he offer that would prevent Billy from wanting to see him? Anything he thought of would only make Billy search him out.

"Why? You're not contagious are you?"

"No, nothing like that. It's just that my situation is complicated."

"What? Are you deformed beyond all imagination?"

"No…"

"Tommy, what's wrong?" Tommy remained silent. How could he tell Billy that he was the new Black Ranger and he was stuck in his suit? Billy obviously took his silence as a lack of an excuse and correctly too. "I'm coming over. Principal Randall gave me your address and I know enough of the town to get over there."

"No…" But Billy had already hung up the phone. "Damn!" He paused and then decided once he started swearing he could at least continue. "Damn! Damn! Damn!" Not only did he have eight former red rangers headed this way, Billy was coming too. He felt like smashing his head against the wall.

* * *

TJ glanced in his rearview mirror to make sure that Andros was still following him. He didn't know why he kept checking because the red Kia Sportage that Andros drove had been right behind him the entire time. He and Andros had decided to leave for Reefside at the same time and were going to carpool but had been hindered by the fact that Ashley refused to let Andros go anywhere without her since the baby was due any day. TJ hadn't thought it would be a big deal for Ashley to tag along—she got her mother to take Brian for the week, something the boy loved because Gramma spoiled him rotten. However, that had meant that they needed to take both their cars because they didn't know what could happen and Andros didn't want TJ stranded anywhere and visa versa.

It was actually a pleasant drive from Angel Grove to Reefside—about an hour. Since they left shortly after eleven, the sun was shining and the sky was blue. The way TJ went took them past the ocean for a long stretch of the trip, so the scenery was beautiful. Andros tended to prefer the faster freeway method, but TJ had talked him into the scenic route. If the baby was born during this stay in Reefside, then TJ doubted that Andros would have another imminent opportunity to do this drive.

Right now, they were going through winding forest roads. The scenery here was a different kind of beauty—the thick green trees and limited activity. The roads were also mostly dirt probably making the ride hell on Ashley, but this part couldn't be avoided. He glanced in his rearview mirror again and saw a car behind Andros—a forest green Explorer. What in the world? He knew that the only other people on the distress signal that might possibly drive were Wes and Eric, but they wouldn't have gotten here this quickly. Unless someone had an early flight and had rented that car… but TJ doubted that.

He took a sharp left turn onto the long dirt road that served as the drive to Tommy's house and looked back to make sure that Andros had followed him. The Explorer had followed them as well. Who in the world was in that car? TJ pulled his car next to a black Jeep that was parked by the house. Andros parked his Sportage next to TJ. TJ and Andros got out of their cars and watched the Explorer park next to them.

"Who is that?" Andros asked, as he rounded his car to help Ashley out.

"I don't know," TJ replied. "If it had been one of the guys, they would have been honking at us or something a long time ago."

Andros reappeared from the other side of his car with Ashley. He had an arm around her waist, supporting her. She didn't look entirely happy with the situation, but seemed resigned to it. They watched as the driver's side door to the Explorer opened and a man they didn't recognize got out. He had longish sandy blonde hair that was pulled back into a ponytail and wire-framed glasses. He was wearing a forest green t-shirt from the University of Hawaii and jeans with flip-flops.

"I didn't know Tommy was already expecting company," the man said.

"Who are you?" TJ asked, stating the question that was on everyone's mind.

The man laughed. "Excuse me, forgot to introduce myself. I'm Billy Cranston. I'm taking over Tommy's classes at the high school and needed to talk to him… Who are you?"

"You're the original Blue Ranger!" Andros blurted.

Billy laughed. "I am."

"So you and Tommy go way back?" TJ asked.

He nodded. "You could say that. I still don't know who you three are."

"I'm TJ," he said taking over introductions for their group. "This is Andros and his wife, Ashley."

"When's the baby due?" Billy asked Ashley.

"Any day now," she replied, her arms going over her large stomach as she smiled.

"I've got two daughters of my own," the former Blue Ranger said. Ashley looked up, interested in what he was saying.

"How old are they?" she asked.

"Fourteen and eight." He paused. "Been a long time since they were babies."

"Are you married?"

"I'm a widower."

Ashley gasped. "I'm sorry."

Billy shrugged. "It happened a long time ago. Why are you three here?"

"We came to see Tommy."

"That makes quite a few of us," he said with a grin. "Let's go see if he's home, shall we?"

* * *

Tommy didn't know what he was going to do. Hayley was sitting at the control panel to the computer, searching for a way to power him down before everyone started arriving. TJ and Andros were due at any moment. He knew why he had activated the distress signal. He needed help recovering the four Dino-Gems that were still out there before Mesogog found out about them and tried to take them for himself. If that happened, none of them would be safe. He figured that with nine of them in addition to the team and Hayley, they would have a better chance of finding them in a timely fashion.

Aside from finding the gems, their zords had taken a serious beating in the last battle and he needed help with the repairs besides himself and Hayley. The kids didn't know how to repair zords and everything that fell under that. He knew that TJ at least was good with things like that and probably Jason and Andros, maybe others. He wasn't sure. Mesogog was building up to something big and he felt like they might need the help if the attack came soon.

They had to find those gems though. He knew that the gems liked to remain in hiding until their owners came, but he had no way of knowing who the gems wanted as their owners. He had to keep them safe until the owners came to him. He had to…

He also hoped that Billy wouldn't come like he said he was going to. Not that he doubted for one moment the veracity of Billy's word, he just hoped that car trouble or some disaster had happened to him. He didn't want to deal with Billy's questions along with the others—not that Billy's questions would be much different, he would just want a more technical explanation of things and Tommy felt too exhausted to do that. And he was exhausted—physically, emotionally, mentally… he wanted to be free from his suit, eat a pizza and then crawl in bed for a month before facing the world again.

Glancing at the clock on the computer, he sighed inwardly. They would definitely be here any moment and for the rest of the day he could expect a wave of arrivals. First TJ and Andros followed by Eric and Wes. Leo and Jason would show up and finally Carter and Cole. And he would have to explain things four different times. There was no way he could make everyone wait until the final person arrived to start explanations.

The doorbell rang. Hayley glanced at him. "Do you want me to let them in?"

He nodded.

"What should I tell them?"

"The truth. Then let them down here to see me. I can explain the rest of the things that they will want to know. Just warn them that I will be in my suit since I'm stuck in it."

Hayley nodded and headed upstairs. Tommy buried his helmeted head in his arms at the control panel of the computer. Why had he started this? Why had he activated that damn distress signal? Why was everything so complicated? He wanted to crawl into a hole and hide from all of this. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Thanks for all the reviews! I really want to know what you guys think. For now, I'd like to do a few responses to reviews:

**cmar**- Wow! Your review has to be the most intelligent review I have ever gotten! As to the cell phone thing from chapter 1, you are absolutely right and chapter 1 will be changed with the next update to reflect that. As to the comment about Eric, I don't know much about Time Force admittedly and I know Eric is supposed to be something of a jerk. My take on his character is that he's mellowed out a little and learned to listen to others. Chapter 2 is also supposed to be kind of a bridge between 2 and 3, wrapping up loose ends from chapter 1, but I can see your point perfectly. Once more, thanks for the review! Keep the constructive comments coming!

**white time ranger**- Patience is a virtue.

**jim hawking jr **and **Ranger Lover**- thanks for the reviews! Glad you like it!

**the-power-of-love**- I'm glad you like Andros and Ashley. They're a favorite ranger couple of mind. I'm glad you like the story.


	4. Life Is Like A Hurricane

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Four: Life Is Like A Hurricane**

Eric looked at his watch for what felt like the umpteenth time. Wes had gone down to the rental car place in the Reefside Airport to get them a car and reserve a car for Carter and Cole. He was standing at the barrier between the terminals and the main part of the airport waiting for Leo and Jason. Their flight was supposed to get in half an hour after theirs and it was running late according to the monitors. Eric suppressed a growl. He hated airports and airplanes. They never seemed to be able to run on time, no matter what happened. If he had thought it would have helped, he would have had Wes slip the pilot some money, but that didn't guarantee anything.

He grinned. How many times over the years had he called Wes 'Oliver Warbucks, Jr.'? Too many times to count. The description was apt, but he didn't imagine that Wes appreciated it overmuch. Still, it was handy to have a friend who was the son of a millionaire in situations like this. Getting everyone plane tickets and rental cars then became the least of their worries. Wes had purposely put them on a later flight to coincide with Jason and Leo's flight so that they could minimize the number of cars parked at Tommy's house.

"Hey! Eric!"

He glanced around the crowd before focusing in on Leo. He and Jason were walking briskly towards him. He grinned. Finally.

"You guys check any bags?" he asked as they approached him.

"Nope," Leo replied, shifting the duffel bag from one should to the other. Eric noticed that the black duffel bag had 'Kendrix' embroidered in pink on one side.

"Is that Kendrix's bag?" Eric asked in a cajoling tone. Leo glared at him with a face that clearly said 'do not even think about going there.'

"So where do we find Wes?" Jason took over the conversation.

"He's down at the rental car kiosk getting us a car and reserving one for Carter and Cole when they get here later this afternoon."

"Can you do that?" Jason asked.

"If you have enough money, you can do anything," Eric replied as they started to make their way towards the escalators and down to where Wes was.

"So who's driving?" Jason questioned idly as they were going down the escalator. Eric turned back towards him. Leo looked like he'd rather not get into this discussion with Jason at this point in time.

"I'd imagine Wes," Eric replied. "Since the car is under his name and stuff." He paused. "This would be so much easier if we had Cole here, because that kid hates driving."

"Well, he was part of the power team that was against pollution," Leo reminded them.

"Captain Planet!" Jason said dryly.

They laughed as they approached Wes, who was waiting for them with the keys to the rental car. Eric smiled to himself. It was good to be back with these guys. The last time they had all gotten together was when Andros' son, Brian had been born. That had also been more of TJ deciding that Andros needed the moral support, especially of someone like Carter who had already been through that experience. Of course, the rest of them had goofed around and made the couple smile. Sitting around the waiting room at three o'clock in the morning playing 'Go Fish' because everyone was too tired to play something more complicated. That had been compounded by the fact that Cole was so slaphappy with exhaustion that whenever he had to go fish he said, 'Looks like Cole's going fishing.' The nurses almost threw them out for being so noisy. Then Andros panicked and the nurses let them stay.

They all threw their bags into the trunk of the car and piled into the car, Jason calling shotgun of course. TJ and Andros would already be there when they arrived. Eric couldn't help but think of this as a kind of homecoming—everyone was coming home, so to speak, to where they belonged. They might try to fit in somewhere else, but they were always Power Rangers first. Everything else came after that in some order unique to the individual. He smiled again. Being a Power Ranger was like being in the Mafia, once you're in, you're in and there is no getting out.

* * *

Tommy looked at the three stunned faces standing in front of him. He had tried to explain why he had activated the distress signal, but they had been preoccupied with the daunting task of getting him out of his suit. Not that the reaction surprised him. Soon enough they would realize that it was time and effort wasted and would come around to the help that he truly needed. He also had not expected Billy to show up at the same time as Andros and TJ. And Ashley had come along with Andros because she was going to have the baby any day now. How could Tommy have forgotten that Ashley was pregnant? Ashley was upstairs with Hayley at this particular moment in time.

Andros and TJ hadn't changed much from the last time he saw them… but Billy had changed from a neat, orderly genius to a kind of eccentric genius. His hair had gotten long and was tied back and he had gone back to wearing glasses instead of contact lenses. And this had to be the first time that he had seen him not wearing predominantly blue. He supposed that old habits died hard. Right now, Billy looked thoughtful.

"Do the Dino-Gems tie into the original Morphing Grid?"

Tommy shook his head. "Hayley designed a Morphing Grid just for these so that there was no potential confusion about power sources."

Billy smiled. "Just like Hayley. What kind of access to the power sources did she put in the grid?"

He shrugged. "Just to see who's powered up and who's powered down." He paused. "Is there any reason to put anything else in there?"

"I can think of a couple reasons," Andros muttered.

"Zordon and Alpha had more things programmed into the original Morphing Grid for our safety. They could power us down or up from the computer and could monitor where we went when morphed. They could also monitor where we teleported and whatnot."

"I didn't know that."

"I was the only one who did," Billy replied sharply. He motioned to the computer. "May I?" Tommy shrugged and Billy sat down in front of the computer. He brought up so many system programs that Tommy was amazed he was keeping track of what he was looking at. "This just needs to be rewired to include the stuff I mentioned," he said after a few minutes.

"How is that going to help Tommy?" TJ asked.

Billy turned to face the Red Turbo Ranger. "If I am correct, he cannot power down on his own like the other Dino Thunder Rangers. Therefore, an outside source is needed to power him down. Since he is linked to the computer when morphed to a certain degree, it is logical to assume that if the computer were rewired to include powering down of rangers then we could power Tommy down from the computer."

"Okay," TJ replied, obviously not wanting to argue with Billy.

"Do you have pliers and electric tape?" Billy asked Tommy. The Dino Thunder Black Ranger nodded and opened a drawer to reveal a variety of tools. Billy nodded. "Good." He picked up the pliers and turned off the computer system. Tommy watched as he dove under the desk and took off a panel revealing much of the wiring for the computer system. "Good God!" they heard Billy muttered from under the desk somewhere. "This has all been done the complicated way! Who did this?"

"Hayley," Tommy replied.

"Remind me to speak with her," Billy said.

* * *

Andros exchanged a glance with TJ as they watched Billy work. Obviously, the man knew what he was doing because he was saying very little, just asking them to hand him various tools as he required them. Andros knew more about ship maintenance than computer maintenance. Granted, if something malfunctioned with a computer, he could normally temporarily repair it until someone more experienced came along. He had fixed Alpha when the Turbo Rangers had run into him and eventually revealed that they had a slowly deteriorating robot on their hands. Robots were more like space ships and cars—much more mechanical than electrical, the kind of repair work that Andros liked.

"Okay, that should be it. Let's turn on the computer and see," Billy said as he reappeared, pair of pliers in hand. "Of course, I'll still have to do some programming, but as long as it reads the changes, we'll be good to go." He looked around. "Where did Tommy get to?"

"He disappeared into the zord bay about half an hour ago," TJ replied. "Want me to go get him?"

"Since all this rewiring was done on account of him, yes," Billy replied rolling his eyes and sitting down at the control panel for the computer. Andros sat in the other chair, watching the computer systems boot up.

"Where did you learn all this?"

Billy laughed. "I've always loved computers. When I was a ranger, I made it a point to know everything I could about the systems in the Command Center. A lot of this knowledge comes from working with Alpha on repairs back in the day." He paused. "I was president of the computer club in high school for a while."

Andros shook his head. "I've never been over fond of computer repairs. There's a reason I started out as a mechanic back on KO 35."

Billy turned sharply and looked at him. "You're not from Earth?"

"No."

A smile cracked the genius' face. "Ever been to Aquitar?"

"Actually, yes. A number of times."

"I lived there for three years."

Andros nearly choked. "How did you manage that?"

"Rita and Zedd turned us—my power team—into kids and the Rangers from Aquitar agreed to come and help us out until we could get ourselves back to the proper age." He paused. "I went there once to get help with the Zeo powers. A few months later, there was an incident where I aged rapidly and went to Aquitar so they could reverse the problem. I ended up staying."

He started typing in programming codes to accommodate the new wiring. Andros watched him work, amazed that he knew so much about computers. "Did you go to the University of Hawaii?" he asked softly.

Billy smiled. "Yes, to get my Ph.D. I was already living and working there. It was convenient."

Andros thought back to the brief conversation that Billy had with Ashley when they all first arrived. He looked at Billy. He couldn't be more than thirty. If one of his daughters was fourteen, then he had to have been about sixteen when she was born, unless she was adopted. He seriously doubted that. The man had to have been in high school at any rate. He thought of Brian who was only eighteen months old. He couldn't imagine having a child when he was still in high school. And if he was a widower, then how did he manage Ph.D. work, a job and two daughters with his wife dead? There seemed to be a lot of mysteries surrounding Billy Cranston and Andros was not sure that any of it was very happy.

"You rang?"

Billy was bringing up a screen that indicated who was morphed and whatnot as TJ reappeared with Tommy. "Yes," Billy said idly. Andros looked at the screen. It was indicating five power sources in use—four powered down and one powered up. Except now there were options under each name on the screen—power up, power down, teleport etc. etc. Billy switched from the keyboard to using the mouse and clicked 'power down' under Tommy's name.

Everyone in the basement lab turned around to watch Tommy and see what would happen. There was a flash of black light and Tommy appeared in civilian form. His clothes were wrinkled and he smelt pretty bad from not being able to bath for so long.

"Billy, you did it!" Tommy crowed with delight. He approached Billy, but Billy wisely held up a hand.

"Do not even think about approaching any of us until you've taken a shower!"

Tommy grinned and bolted up the stairs two at a time. They could hear noises of disgust from Hayley and Ashley as he pasted them.

"We need a self-cleaning mechanism in the suits," Andros muttered.

"I'll work on it," Billy promised as the three of them walked up the stairs into the main part of the house. Hayley and Ashley were sitting in the kitchen. They clustered around the table to join them.

"I see you had success," Hayley said.

Billy nodded. "I still haven't gotten what I came here for, but it can wait."

"You guys want something to drink?" Hayley asked them in general. "I think there's water, coffee, beer… there might be some soda around here somewhere." She paused. "On account of the kids," she added as an afterthought.

Andros sat down next to Ashley and wrapped an arm around her lower back. She leaned into his embrace. He knew that she was tired of being pregnant and just wanted to have the baby before too much longer. He hoped that they could get home before the baby was born, but he wasn't sure how long this would take, wasn't sure of the entire scope of what Tommy wanted them to accomplish. He rubbed Ashley's lower back. Once the others arrived, they would have to make arrangements for the night. There was no way Ashley could handle sleeping wherever like he and the others could.

They all indicated to Hayley that coffee was fine and she began rummaging through Tommy's cupboards looking for mugs. She opened the fridge to try and find some milk for people that might want it and groaned.

"What?" TJ asked.

Hayley emerged with a container of creamer and shut the fridge. "That thing is full of Conner-food. You can tell he's been here a lot recently."

"Conner?" Andros questioned.

Hayley rolled her eyes. "The Dino Thunder Red Ranger. He's been coming over to help me repair his raptor-cycle. The kids have taken to stocking whatever food they want in the fridge since Tommy has been stuck in his suit. He's going to flip when he sees it."

"Or he'll love it," TJ muttered.

"Looks like food to me," Billy shrugged, ignoring the scathing glance from Hayley.

"At any rate," Hayley continued putting the creamer on the table. "I'm sure you guys will get to meet the kids before the end of your stay here. In fact, Conner has a soccer game tomorrow afternoon that I'm sure he would love for all you to attend." She paused. "He already conned me and the others kids into coming."

"I think that requires a group consensus," Andros replied.

"When are the others getting here?" Ashley asked him, suddenly.

Andros looked down at his watch. It was almost two. Wes had said that he and Eric would arrive at the airport around one-thirty, but were waiting for Leo and Jason before they left the airport to minimize the number of rental cars at Tommy's house. He had said that Jason and Leo's flight was getting in at two, but it would still take them some time to get the rental car situation taken care of and get luggage if anyone checked anything. On top of that, it was still a good forty minute drive from the airport to Tommy's house. They probably wouldn't get in until three. Carter and Cole's flight was supposed to have left at eleven a.m., Reefside time, but they had a good four hour flight and the drive from the airport so it would be safe not to expect them until four or later. That was not accounting for the fact that flights were late.

"Wes said that he, Eric, Jason and Leo would be here at about three. Carter and Cole won't be in until four or later."

Ashley nodded. She looked exhausted. Hayley must have noticed it too. "Tommy has a guest room upstairs if you want to lie down," Hayley said to her.

She nodded gratefully and leaned heavily on Andros to stand up. Hayley told him which room and he helped Ashley upstairs. He found the room easily. It was simply decorated and had the look of a room that had not been used in a long time. It also had a small adjoining bathroom that also looked like it had not been used in a long time. He just pulled down the covers on the bed and sighed as Ashley sat down heavily, kicking off her sandals. He gently tucked her in as she lay down and planted a kiss on her forehead.

"Andros?" she murmured sleepily.

"Yes, Ash?" he answered. She took his hand. He smiled at her and sat down beside her on the bed.

"Wake me up before the others get here, okay?" Her eyes drooped shut.

He smiled. "Okay. I'll be right downstairs if you need anything." She nodded and snuggled into the blankets. He kissed her forehead again. "I love you so much, Ashley," he whispered before heading back downstairs.

* * *

Tommy had not realized how much he missed taking a shower, until just now. As he stood under the warm water, letting it wash away the tension and dirt of the past few months, he felt ten times better than he had when stuck in that suit. All too soon, the water turned cold. Damn small water heater. He got out of the shower, toweled off, brushed his teeth and shaved quickly. He padded into his bedroom to find some clothes. Most everything in here was the way he had left it. He found a black wife beater and army green cargo shorts.

He went out in the hallway just in time to catch Andros leaving the guest room. "Ashley's sleeping," he explained.

"When's she due?" Tommy asked.

"Any day now," Andros replied. "I didn't want to leave her alone with Brian."

"Understandable. Where's Brian?"

"With her mother." Andros rolled his eyes. "He loves it."

Tommy laughed as they walked downstairs and joined Billy, TJ and Hayley in the kitchen. He went to his fridge to find something to eat and blanched at the contents. "What is all this junk?" he asked in the general direction of Hayley.

She shrugged. "The kids decided to stock what they wanted in there when you got stuck in your suit. Most of it is courtesy of Conner." She paused. "I think he has some Bagel Bites in the freezer. Those are edible."

He groaned and located the Bagel Bites in the freezer. Luckily enough for him, they were cheese and not any weird pepperoni or meat thing that Conner normally would have eaten. He looked at Billy, Andros and TJ. "You guys want anything to eat?"

"No," Andros replied.

"We ate lunch on the way up here," TJ added.

"I'm good," Billy stated.

Tommy nodded and ripped the wrapping off the Bagel Bites, shoving them in the microwave. Well, frozen imitation Conner-food was better than nothing at all. He had a feeling he wouldn't be getting anything else to eat until the other red rangers showed up. He also had a feeling that Conner would be wondering where his Bagel Bites got to.

* * *

"Take a left up here."

Wes steered the car down a dirt road, per Leo's instructions. Leo was in the back seat of the car with the map and had been unofficially declared the navigator. His last experience with Eric as the navigator had turned out disastrous and Leo had made noises about Jason not being to find his head if it wasn't attached to his shoulders. Wes was inclined to believe the same thing about Leo, but handed him the road map and MapQuest directions anyways. So far they appeared to be on the correct path.

The dirt road he had just turned onto (from another dirt road) had led him down a twisting drive until a smallish house came into view. There were four cars parked in front of the place. Wes recognized two of them as TJ and Andros' cars and assumed that at least one of the others belonged to Tommy if not both.

They all got out of the car and walked in silence to the front porch. There was a picnic table with some rocks on it. Wes glanced at them and watched as Jason rang the doorbell. There were some footsteps from in the house and the sound of several voices before a familiar face opened the door. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Thanks for all the reviews and the sweet comments! I'm not going to do review responses for this chapter-- homework, the necessary evil that demands so much attention. I'll try to do review responses for upcoming chapters though, so keep your eyes peeled. 


	5. Faith of the Heart

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Five: Faith of the Heart**

Tommy opened the door to see Wes, Eric, Leo and Jason standing on the front porch along with a little blue rental car parked next to the other four cars parked in front of his house. A grin cracked over his face. What followed could only be described as quite a lot of bear-hugging and noise-making. Hayley and Billy stayed in the background, watching the whole scene unfold with a degree of amusement on their faces. Tommy imagined they looked like a fraternity or football team having a five year reunion party, when the minor annoyance details had faded, but all the good times were still fresh in their minds.

Wes was dressed more casually than Tommy had ever seen him dress. Normally, if he wasn't wearing his Silver Guardians' uniform, he was wearing some kind of suit. Today, he was dressed in blue jeans and a gray athletics' shirt. No one in the room was wearing red, ironically enough. It was as if they had all tired of the color years ago and were loathed to wear it now, whether it was psychological or not. Leo was wearing a blue plaid, short sleeved button up shirt with khaki shorts. Eric had on a 'Silver Hills High School Track and Field' shirt that was royal blue with black nylon shorts. Jason sported a green Hawaiian shirt and blue board shorts.

After the insane greetings, the room quieted enough for Tommy to ask when Carter and Cole were getting in.

"Their flight supposedly gets in three. They'll probably get here around four," Eric replied and pulled his cell phone from where it had been clipped on the waistband of his shorts. "I can call Carter and see where they are."

The noise level jumped again while Eric dialed Carter's cell number and was waiting for either someone to pick it up or the voicemail. He apparently had someone on line soon, because he said "Cole?" into the phone and then yelled at everyone in the room, "Shut-up for Chrissakes! I'm trying to have a phone conversation here!"

Everyone quieted.

"Cole? What the hell are you doing answering Carter's cell phone?" Eric paused. "Oh, I see. He's driving." The look on Eric's face was comical. "Where are you guys? Uh-huh… uh-huh… well, we'll see you guys in a little bit then. Uh-huh. Bye." He disconnected the call.

"So where are they?" Tommy asked.

Eric took a deep breath, looking like he was trying to compose himself. "The kid and the firefighter will be here in about twenty minutes. Their flight got in early."

"So when do we eat?" Jason asked.

Tommy laughed. "We could always eat the rest of Conner's Bagel Bites." He glanced back to Billy and Hayley who were laughing. Andros and TJ had cracked smiles. "But seriously, once Carter and Cole get here, there's a decent Chinese place not too far from here. We can eat there or order in."

"Excellent," Jason replied as everyone migrated towards the living room. Tommy noticed that Andros had slipped upstairs, probably to wake up Ashley. He wondered briefly if anyone else besides TJ had originally known that Ashley was coming along. "So what's the problem, bro?" Jason asked once everyone had found some place to sit.

Tommy sincerely hoped that all these people had not planned on staying at his house because he didn't have enough room for all of them. Right now by his count, there were seven people associated with the red ranger distress signal plus Billy and Hayley for a grand total of nine people, eleven once Carter and Cole arrived and even more if any of the kids decided to stop by and pay him a visit.

He looked at the people all over his living room. Jason had parked himself in one of the easy chairs. Tommy was not sure if the others just never argued with him and always let him have his way or if it was a sign of respect. Wes, Eric and TJ were sitting on the couch, while Leo was sitting on the floor by the coffee table, thumbing through an old issue of 'National Geographic.' Billy and Hayley hovered by the entrance to the kitchen, unsure if they should leave the group of them alone or remain. It was then that Jason realized that Billy was there. He stood up.

"Billy! Where have you been, bro? Haven't heard from you in years!" He pulled a slightly embarrassed Billy into a bear hug. "Weren't you in Hawaii?" Jason asked once he had released the former Blue Ranger.

"Affirmative. Now I'm in Reefside, teaching at the high school."

"That's great!" Jason turned to the rest of the group. "You guys, this is Billy. He was the original blue ranger." That warranted another round of introductions, after Billy explained that he had already met TJ. Then they had to introduce Hayley to the group.

Soon after, Andros reappeared with Ashley. That got a loud cry of 'ASHLEY!' and everyone who had just arrived had to give Ashley a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Jason then settled her into the chair he had been sitting in. Tommy smiled. So chivalry wasn't dead after all. To Tommy's mind it felt like they had been repeating themselves all day, but it would soon pass. By tomorrow, everyone would be settled and on the same knowledge level.

"You didn't tell us you were bringing Ashley along," Jason said to Andros, giving him a friendly shove in the shoulder. Andros didn't reply. He just perched on the arm of the chair next to Ashley with an arm protectively around her shoulders. Her arms settled over her large stomach and a smile hovered over her mouth.

"So what's going on?" Leo asked Tommy once everyone had resettled themselves around the living room.

"He was stuck in his suit," TJ muttered.

"You're a ranger again!" Eric asked with a note of shock in his voice.

"Uh, yeah," Tommy replied, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

"Obviously you're not stuck in your suit anymore," Wes said. "So what's the big emergency?"

"I didn't activate the distress signal because I was stuck in my suit!"

"How'd you get out of the suit?" Leo asked.

"He must've smelt bad when he got out of there," Eric said with a laugh.

"He did," TJ affirmed.

"Guys! There are more important things going on that the fact that I was stuck in my suit! Can we focus please?" he said loudly. That got everyone's attention. He took a deep breath. "Okay, the power source for the Dino Thunder team—the current power team—are things called Dino-Gems. They're from the meteor that crashed to earth millions of years ago and contain enough power to create Power Rangers. I found them when I was doing that research on the island for my Ph.D. work. They've remained in hiding since the island blew up and have slowly revealed themselves. I know where five of them are—they belong to the five current rangers. However, there are nine in total and I don't know where the other four are. Mesogog knows about the other four and we need to find them before he does. Our zords have also taken a beating from our last battle and need to be repaired. The repairs that need to be done require more man power than just me and Hayley. And Mesogog has been up to something lately and I just feel it would be better to have more people around in case."

That speech was met with silence. Tommy took in the stunned faces and then his teacher instinct kicked in. "Any questions?" he asked.

He was surprised when Leo had one.

"Who's Mesogog?"

* * *

Carter looked at the mass number of cars parked in front of the small house in the middle of the woods. It had to be the right house just from that fact alone. He exchanged a glance with Cole and they got out of their silver rental car. The trip had been no problem. Their flight got in early and the guy at the rental car kiosk had gushed about getting good service for friends of 'Mr. Collins.' Carter had known that Wes' father was rich, but he hadn't known that he could command the respect of a rental car place.

The front door of the house was flung open and people began streaming out of the house. Carter had forgotten how huge the group of them could look. He grinned. It was almost akin to a homecoming.

"Kid! Carter!" Eric yelled, shaking Carter's hand and pulling Cole into a huge bear hug and lifting the younger man off his feet. Carter rolled his eyes. Everyone knew that Eric liked Cole a lot, but would never admit to anyone, including himself.

He didn't have much time to contemplate this, because he was attacked by Andros and Leo and found himself lying in the grass of Tommy's front yard. Somewhere in the back ground he heard Jason say, "So I guess he's not the new guy anymore, huh?"

Carter pushed Leo and Andros away from him and sat up. Ashley was standing on the porch, her arms around her very pregnant belly. A woman and a man Carter didn't know were also standing on the porch. He mentally kicked himself. He had temporarily forgotten that Ashley was so pregnant and he hadn't even thought to think that Andros might bring her along because of it.

"Glad you guys made it!" Tommy was standing over him, offering him a hand up. Carter accepted the assistance and was hauled to his feet.

"He needs to shrink," Leo muttered to Andros. Carter glared at Leo. For some reason, the conversation always went back to the fact that Carter was taller than all the rest of them, sometimes described as being 'crazy tall.'

Carter shook Tommy's hand. "I'm just glad Wes was around to make all the travel arrangements," he replied to Tommy. "So what did we miss?"

"His whole speech about how we have to save the world," TJ muttered.

He swung around to look at TJ. "What?"

"That's not what I said," Tommy quickly amended. Cole wandered over to where Carter and Tommy were. "The short version is that there are four more Dino-Gems out there, the source for the new power team which I am a part of." Carter felt his jaw drop open. "We need to find the other four Dino-Gems before Mesogog—the bad guy. We also need to repair the zords and just be alert for anything unusual."

Cole was gaping at Tommy. "Are you serious?"

Tommy nodded.

Carter shook his head. "I knew there was a new power team, but I didn't know that you had anything to do with it."

"Not even Jason knew until now." Tommy shrugged. "I didn't want mass pandemonium running through all the previous rangers."

"Who are the other rangers?" Cole asked.

"I think you're about to find out." Carter followed Tommy's gaze to a red sports car that was coming down the drive that led to Tommy's house. From a distance, it looked like it was packed with people. The car pulled up to the small crowd on the front lawn and the passenger's side window rolled down.

"If there's a party, how come we're not invited!" a teenage boy wearing a blue flannel shirt cried, sticking his head out the window.

"He's out of his suit!" a female voice from the back of the car yelled.

"Doctor O, dude, you've got to start telling us these things!" the driver reprimanded Tommy.

Tommy grinned at the kids in the car. "May I introduce the Dino Thunder Power Rangers?" he said.

A window in the back seat rolled down. "Why are you telling all these people this?" the girl hissed. "I thought we weren't supposed to tell anyone who we are. Who are all these people?"

"Kira, everyone here used to be a Power Ranger," he replied to the girl.

"Oh." She looked around at the group. "Why are they all here?"

"To help us out."

"Oh."

"Well," the driver said loudly. "I can see you've got all the help you're going to need with the raptor-cycles. We're going to the movies now. See all of you at my soccer game tomorrow. Bye!" The windows on the car were rolled up and the car zoomed off.

Carter stared after the car. "You went back to using high school kids?"

Tommy shrugged. "The Dino-Gems chose their owner. I couldn't control who they ultimately decided to pick."

"Soccer game?" Cole sounded like the idea of a soccer game was not the most appealing.

"Yeah. Conner has a soccer game tomorrow. I suppose that since I'm no longer stuck in my suit, I'm obligated to go." He paused. "You guys don't have to go though."

"Wait a minute! You were stuck in your suit?" The situation was becoming more and more outlandish as the fragmented explanations came out. What in the world was really going on? What was this Mesogog creature besides the bad guy?

"I'll explain everything in time," Tommy replied.

"Yeah well, explain it over dinner!" Jason interrupted. "Where's this Chinese place?"

Carter laughed. Yes, this was definitely like a homecoming.

* * *

Leo looked at all the faces around the table. Just how intense was what Tommy was asking them to do? There was no doubt that everyone would be willing to do whatever they must to protect the Earth, but how far did this extend? It seemed like the attacks were limited to the Reefside area. How, then, did it affect the rest of them and their families? There were rumors of a new power team in Seabrook, but there was no news of a half-man, half-reptile named Mesogog who was intent on returning the Earth to its prehistoric roots. In other words, he wanted to wipe out the humans (or alter them in some way) and bring back dinosaurs.

He was wedged between Carter and Andros at their table—actually, several tables pushed together to make room for all the people. Billy and Hayley had been introduced to Carter and Cole, but declined the invitation to dinner. Billy had to get home to his daughters, since he didn't quite trust the younger. Hayley had to go to the cyber-café she owned and do the normal closing up routine. Billy had promised he would be back as soon as he could to help determine the extent of the damage to the zords. Leo didn't know what he and Tommy were going to do about the teaching situation since Billy had been supposed to take over Tommy's classes and now Tommy was perfectly capable of teaching.

He decided not to dwell on it. Most of the intense work would start tomorrow morning. Right now everyone was intent on catching up in the year and a half since they had last been all together. Eric was grilling Cole about his personal life.

"I know you've been hanging out with a girl," Eric wheedled. "Who is she?"

Cole glared at him. "Alyssa."

"And you know her because…" Leo had the distinct impression that Eric was doing all this wheedling for the benefit of everyone who didn't know.

"You know why I know her!" Cole said through clenched teeth. "She was on my team!" 

"Man," Eric replied. "Maybe I should quit dating normal girls and look for one who used to be a ranger. Then my relationships might last longer than three days."

"You were with the last girl you dated for four months," Wes countered.

"It was an exaggeration, stupid!"

Leo smiled. He and Kendrix had been each other's first in most senses of the word. Neither of them had had a serious relationship (or one that had moved beyond casual kissing after the high school dance.) Both of them were virgins when they started dating. What had sparked their relationship had to be the strangest of anyone sitting at the table. He had been having nightmares induced by Trakeena. One night Mike had to work and didn't want to leave him alone (the brothers had shared quarters on Terra Venture), so he asked Kendrix to stay with him. Leo had already gone to sleep when Kendrix came in their quarters. When he woke up from one of the nightmares, Kendrix was straddling his chest and they were kissing passionately. Things just snowballed from there.

When Kendrix died, he thought he would die right along with her. Those days were an endless march of torture. He had more fights with Mike than he cared to remember about 'moving on' and 'stopping his self-inflicted guilt.' What Mike hadn't known was that he had been about to propose to Kendrix. He had even found them quarters of their own and that was going to be the surprise right before he asked her to marry him. Maya had been helping him decorate. When the Quasar Sabers were put back in the rock and Kendrix returned to her physical form, he had been so afraid of losing her again that they got married two days later. For a long time, it had been hard for him to let her go anywhere without him because he was so afraid. He had to learn to let go before he killed their marriage.

They had been married five years. They didn't have any children although they were still young enough to have as many as they wanted. He shook his head and tried to focus on the conversation. He would try to fix whatever was going on between him and Kendrix when he got home.

* * *

Andros had never seen such a large group of people make sleeping arrangements so quickly in his entire life. It had taken them longer to decide to who was going to room with whom back during that mission to the moon. This was amazing. Tommy had said, in no uncertain terms, that Andros and Ashley were staying in his guest room. It would eliminate any commutes from hotels for Ashley and he was of the opinion that that would be better for her. Andros agreed with him, although he didn't say anything out loud.

Eric, TJ and Cole were going to stay in Tommy's living room. He had a sleeper sofa and an air mattress that would work for them. The idea of them staying in the living room was that if anything came up suddenly, someone would be there to deal with it. That left Wes to find a hotel for Leo, Carter, Jason and himself. It was still rather early, so Wes didn't foresee any problems with the hotel situation.

At that particular moment in time, Eric, TJ and Cole were in the living room watching _Ghostbusters_ on HBO and eating popcorn. Ashley was upstairs, probably asleep already and probably tired of being surrounded by all these men. Andros was in the kitchen with a cup of tea, trying to organize his thoughts. And Tommy was down in the lab, checking the surveillance for Reefside—making sure no monsters were attacking.

He supposed that he was scared that Ashley would have the baby while they were here or that something bad was going to happen to her. He had not had any encounters with the Tyrrano-drones or Mesogog and his underlings, but he had a nasty feeling that any encounters with them would not be the most pleasant thing on the planet. And they still had a lot of work to get done—repairing the zords, finding those Dino-Gems… he could see now why Tommy wanted all of them there in addition to the team. And now Billy was committed to helping them. That added more manpower. Why did he feel like this was a war brewing and sooner or later things would come crashing down around them?

He thought of Brian, eighteen months old and staying with his mother-in-law. He was glad that Brian was far out of harm's way if something should happen while on this mission. The last thing he wanted was for something to happen to his son. God, he would have never thought that being married and having children would change his perception so much. He was willing to die if it would mean saving his family. His hazel eyes glanced to the three watching the movie in the living room… yes, he was willing to die for the insane asylum escapees as well. He could only imagine what chaos would have happened if Eric, TJ and Cole had been the same age and grown up together. He smiled to himself.

"Andros!" TJ called from the living room. "Get in here! You're going to miss the best part of the movie!" Andros was fairly certain that TJ was referring to the scene with the Stay-Puff Marshmallow Man, but he stood up and went into the living room.

"Finally," Eric said when Andros sat down in one of the armchairs. "I was beginning to think that you had drowned yourself in the boiling water."

"That would hurt," Cole said absently.

Eric rolled his eyes. "No shit."

Andros laughed. Being a Power Ranger was like being in a family. You don't get to pick who you're a ranger with or who the rangers before and after you are. Sometimes they're your only reason for staying alive and sometimes they're your reason for wanting to jump off a bridge. But they're family, a Power Ranger family. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Thanks for all the reviews guys! They really made my day-- I really do enjoy knowing what you think. Ideas, comments, suggestions and the like are all welcomed as well. I'd like to thank old and new reviewers (and I know some new people picked up the story at the last update.) As usual, I'm a horrible person and have mass amounts of reading to get done for class, so no reviewer responses. And if you've read the story, just drop me a line (review) to let me know your out there and reading. :) Thanks a bunch-- you guys are the bane of my fan fiction existence. lol --Etcy


	6. the Fire Still Burns

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**Author's Note: (a) **There have been some minor changes to chapters 1 and 5-- nothing that affects the ultimate course of the story though. Although, for those of you interested in Cole's love life, I would recommend re-reading chapter 5 because this chapter will flow much better. With that, enjoy the chapter!

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Six: the Fire Still Burns**

"Cole, what was the point of us letting you have the air mattress, if you're going to sleep next to the air mattress and not on it?"

Cole woke up to Eric's amused voice the next morning. He blinked a couple times, trying to figure out where he was. Then he remembered, he was on the air mattress on the floor of Tommy's living room. Only, he wasn't on the air mattress. He was wrapped up in his blanket next to the thing. Eric was leaning over the side of the couch. Tommy had a queen-sized sleeper sofa and TJ and Eric had put a barrier of pillows between them so that there was no possible way either of them could accidentally touch each other or something else equally as questionable.

He rubbed his eyes and sat up. TJ was not anywhere in the room and the sofa had been set back to its original form. Eric was still in his pajamas and was sitting on the couch looking through an old issue of TV Guide. Cole looked at the clock on the wall. It was seven-thirty. That would make it eleven-thirty in Turtle Cove. His stomach rumbled—it was also way past time for him to eat something.

"Where's TJ?" he asked, trying to clear his throat and not succeeding.

"In the shower," Eric replied. "And before you ask, Tommy is down in the lab. Our instructions are to take turns in the bathroom and try not to disturb Andros and Ashley, especially Ashley."

"Where does breakfast figure into all this?"

Eric looked up from the TV Guide. "This is coming from the kid who wouldn't eat anything before eight in the morning?"

"I'm still on Turtle Cove time. In Turtle Cove, it's eleven-thirty and I'm hungry."

Eric laughed. "We could always raid Tommy's refrigerator and see what we find."

"Good call." Cole ran a hand through his hair, managing to get most of it out of his eyes and stood up.

"We're hiding all the blankets behind the couch," Eric told him. Cole looked at the tangled mass that was his sheet and blanket. He quickly folded them and added them to the stack behind the couch, while kicking the air mattress by the wall to lessen the potential damage to it. He picked up the throw pillow he had been using and tossed it on the couch with the others and followed Eric into the kitchen. Cole opened the fridge while Eric rummaged through some cupboards. There was not much in the way of breakfast food in the fridge—it seemed to be limited to produce, lunchmeat and cheese.

"Nothing worthwhile in the fridge," Cole muttered.

"He's got some cereal," Eric replied rummaged through a cupboard. "And… some Bisquik?"

"Excellent," Cole said with a grin grabbing the Bisquik from Eric.

"What are you going to do with Bisquik?"

"Make pancakes."

* * *

The throughways in the house jammed just as Tommy was coming out of the lab. Eric was coming downstairs, obviously just showered and dressed. Wes, Leo, Carter and Jason were coming through the front door and everyone could smell pancakes and coffee coming from the kitchen.

"I smell food," Jason muttered under his breath.

"What's going on?" he asked Eric.

Eric shrugged. "Cole's in the kitchen making breakfast." He paused. "I think TJ's in there with him."

"Good," Leo said. "_He_ wouldn't let us eat before leaving the hotel," he added with a pointed glare for Wes.

"That food is not edible!" Wes protested. "I'm doing you a favor!"

Jason yawned loudly. "Mornin' everyone!" he said cheerily to smooth over any forthcoming storms and went into the kitchen.

Tommy exchanged a glance with Wes and they followed the rest of the group into the kitchen. Cole was indeed making breakfast, however, he was still in his pajamas. Coffee was brewing and somehow Cole had found a stack of plates, three of which already held pancakes. He had even managed to find a bottle of syrup. Tommy was impressed. He wouldn't have been able to scare up this much food out of his kitchen.

"This kid is amazing," TJ was saying. "He's made blueberry, chocolate chip and plain pancakes. He should be a chef."

Tommy felt his eyes go wide as Cole picked up the frying pan and flipped the pancakes in the air, catching them neatly in the frying pan. "I can make Mickey Mouse pancakes too," the Wild Force Ranger added, taking the pancakes out of the pan and adding them to the already existing plates of pancakes.

There was a mad rush for pancakes and coffee and soon there were people balancing plates and mugs of coffee all over the house. He and Cole were soon alone in the kitchen. "I was going to make eggs, bacon and toast as well," Cole was saying over the departing noise as he used the rest of the pancake batter. "But you didn't have any." He paused as he flipped the pancakes in the air. "I guess I'll have to go to the grocery store when we get some free time."

Tommy laughed. "I would probably be a good idea to get the Conner-food out of the fridge before Conner gets the idea that he's allowed to leave his food here."

"Conner was the driver, right?" Cole clarified as he put the last of the pancakes on the not-surprisingly empty plates. Tommy watched as in amazement as Cole put all of the dishes in the dishwasher except for the plates with the pancakes and the unused plates and mugs.

"Yeah," he replied. "Do you always clean up the kitchen this well?"

Cole shrugged. "The only room of my apartment that is clean is the kitchen." He paused. "Well, and the bathroom. Alyssa kind of beat that into my head."

"She's your girlfriend?"

Cole shrugged. "Kind of. I'm not sure what our relationship is anymore. I guess I could still call her my girlfriend although I'm expecting the break-up call any time now."

"You seemed resigned to it," Tommy stated as he poured himself a mug of coffee and divided the remaining pancakes between himself and Cole, while leaving some for Andros and Ashley who had yet to make an appearance.

"There's not much I can do about it," Cole replied, taking his plate of pancakes. "If I begged her to stay with me, it would only make her mad. I mean I can't force her to stay in a relationship if she doesn't want to."

Tommy nodded. "I felt that way about someone once."

"Kimberly?" He nodded. Was there anyone who didn't know that story? "Eric says you still love her even after she dumped you and hasn't talked to you in years."

"Eric has a big mouth. Actually Wes probably told him." He sighed. "I don't know if what I feel for her is love anymore. I haven't spoken to her in so long that it's very likely that we're different people now. I've been clinging to the past for so long now, afraid to let it go. Maybe all I've ever really loved since she broke up with me is a memory."

"That's not good," Cole said softly. "Memories can be warped to fit what you want."

* * *

Tommy sipped coffee from a thermos as he waited for the soccer game to start. The day was sunny, but there was a nasty breeze that colder than anything they had yet. Probably meant that it was going to be a cold winter or something along those lines. Trent was watching the café while Hayley came to the game. Hayley was sitting in a lawn chair while Ethan and Kira sat on a blanket waiting for the game to start. All his 'guests' had managed to find decent excuses not to attend the game—not that he could blame them. None of them knew Conner well at all and no one probably felt comfortable coming to the game. Billy had said he might drop by later, depending on what the girls had going on.

Well, after breakfast was over and the kitchen had been cleaned (by TJ and Eric who threw Cole out of the kitchen to go take a shower and get dressed), everyone seemed eager to get started on the tasks at hand. TJ and Andros had taken over the diagnostic scans on the zords and also wanted to make sure that the systems were clean with no viruses or anything. They were supposed have the extent of the damage and repairs needed by the time Tommy and the other Dino Thunder rangers got back from the soccer game. Carter had been working on Tommy's Jeep, which had died during its period of disuse. Leo, Wes and Jason had looked at the scanner readings and were going to make a preliminary search for the missing Dino-Gems. Cole and Eric had headed to the grocery store to get mass amounts of food for the people staying at Tommy's house. They had left shortly before Tommy equipped with Wes' credit card, a tentative shopping list and Andros' car.

A school bus pulled up to the soccer field and the opposing soccer team in bright orange jerseys streamed out and onto the field. Their jerseys clashed horribly with the bright red uniforms that the Reefside team sported.

"Who're we playing?" he asked Ethan and Kira.

"Angel Grove," Ethan replied in a voice that indicated he would rather be anywhere but on a soccer field watching Conner play.

Tommy snorted. So Angel Grove had changed their school colors since he had gone there and apparently the mascot. When he had been in school, the colors had been blue and white and the mascot was a lion. Now the colors appeared to be orange and black and he assumed that the mascot was a tiger from the cartoon tigers on the front of the soccer team's jerseys. The coaches got off the bus after the team and began yelling orders.

Conner dribbled a soccer ball over to them with a grin on his face. "Our biggest rivals," he said indicating the orange team that was taking over the field.

He must have really been out of the loop, because he didn't remember Reefside High School when he had gone to Angel Grove. Then again, Tommy had never been affiliated with the soccer team in any way.

"They've got the best coach around too," Conner was saying. "Apparently, he turned their whole soccer program around. They went from last in the region to third in one season."

"Who's the coach?" Kira asked.

"Some guy named Adam Park," Conner called as he rejoined the team for their warm-ups.

Tommy's heart froze. Adam Park? The same Adam Park who had been a ranger with him all those years ago? The same Adam Park who he had eventually stopped speaking to from lack of contact on both their parts? How many other Adam Parks could there be? He studied the coaches on the other side of the field, barking orders. It was hard to tell who any of them were partly because they were so far away and partly because they were all in identical polo shirts with bright orange bandanas around their heads. None of the coaches looked like Adam.

"This game needs to start," Ethan grumbled. "Because I'm about to freeze to death."

Kira gave him a scathing look. "It's not that cold out here."

"And what happened to showing support for your teammates?" Hayley reminded him over the computer magazine she had been reading.

A black Jeep Cherokee with an orange flame job pulled into the parking lot adjoining the field where the bus had ultimately parked. A man dressed exactly like the other coaches got out of the car and hurried over to the field. Tommy felt like he should recognize him, but nothing rang a bell. Maybe the Adam Park who was the coach was not the same person he had known after all. He thought back to his conversation with Cole back at breakfast. He had been hanging onto the past for a very long time. Every time he turned a corner he expected to see someone he had been a ranger with, never mind the fact that they were spread all over the country, not to mention the world and the universe.

Billy's forest green Explorer pulled into the parking lot and Billy got out of the car with his cell phone to his ear. Tommy heard the last part of the conversation as Billy hurried over to where they were.

"No… that doesn't sound good. Do you know if the zords had prolonged contact with something unsavory after the last battle? Just run it through the scanners anyways… Running it past Norton's or McAfee would work to identify something simpler… I have a program that will scan for that sort of stuff that I built… I'll bring it after the game… No problem… Make sure you scan the primary systems for errors… do the auxiliary last. They can go into battle without the auxiliary systems… Okay. Call me if you need anything else. Bye."

Billy disconnected the call and turned to a woman that had been looking at him strangely. He shrugged.

"The guys in my Boy Scout troop are hardcore gamers and I was giving them some advice on War of the Computer Viruses II."

The woman looked curious. "Is it a new game? I have a son who loves that kind of stuff."

"Well, it's kind of a prototype we're working on," Billy replied evasively stepping over to Tommy and the others.

"Andros?" Tommy asked.

Billy nodded. "He wanted some advice on a system glitch they found. I think he got my number from Jason." He paused and put his hands in his pockets. "I asked the girls if they wanted to come along, but Susie was watching _Care Bears_ and Mary Anne had a Pre-Cal test she needed to study for."

"You're just in time," Tommy replied. "So how are the repairs coming?" he asked in an undertone to prevent the woman who had been listening to Billy's phone conversation from getting any strange ideas about them.

"It's hard to say. I'd imagine they won't be done with the initial system diagnostics until sometime this evening. There are quite a few zords. They probably won't be able to start any serious repairs until tomorrow morning."

"What are they running the scans for?"

Billy shrugged. "Everything. Since the zords have dinosaur DNA for their neural functions, it is imperative that they be scanned for viruses and potential system glitches that could lead to a zord malfunction causing the zord in question to go crazy, so to speak."

Tommy had forgotten how quickly Billy could pick up a computer system—or an entire Power Grid—and analyze everything that was going on in less than twenty-four hours. That was how the genius' mind worked, systematically. He took in all the information regarding something and had it all organized and its relationship to one another down in no time.

"Are you Billy?" Ethan asked in the direction of the former Blue Ranger. Tommy smiled to himself, realizing the similarities between Ethan and Billy. They both were the Blue Ranger and their zord had been the triceratops. Both could be considered the geniuses of the group they were a part of.

Billy nodded. "Affirmative. You two must be Ethan and Kira. Tommy was telling us about you guys yesterday."

"I hope it was good things," Ethan replied, sounding slightly mortified.

"Mostly," Billy said in an off-hand manner. "Most of the derogatory comments were regarding Conner and his choice of food."

"That's scary on a good day," Kira muttered.

"The freezer was full of Bagel Bites," Tommy growled.

Billy just laughed good-naturedly at all of them. Tommy rolled his eyes at him and tried drinking more of the coffee. He was reasonably warm except for his fingers and the rapidly cooling thermos wasn't helping the situation. Tommy and Billy had talked about the teaching situation before Billy left yesterday and had decided that Billy would go ahead and take over the classes. The reasoning was that Tommy would spend the extra time helping with the team and acclimatize himself back to society.

The soccer game passed quickly. In no time, the Angel Grove Tigers had beaten the Reefside Knights, 3-1. Conner looked disappointed, but lined up all the same to shake hands with the other team. Tommy looked at the coaches who were standing in the middle of the field talking. The one who had arrived late was facing their side of the field. Tommy suddenly had a flash of Adam at a karate tournament when they had still been in high school. He recalled that Adam's hair had been longish, although it had not been long enough to tie into a ponytail or something to keep it back completely. At that tournament, Adam had his hair held back by a green bandana. The coach had longish black hair except it was held back by an orange bandana. Tommy continued to stare. The man looked kind of like Adam, older and slightly more muscular… Tommy's face broke out into a grin. If that guy wasn't Adam, then there was something seriously wrong with his memory.

Billy seemed to be thinking the same thing. "Is that Adam?" the genius asked.

"I think so."

Billy shrugged. "I should have known he would end up a soccer coach."

Tommy looked at him. "How so?"

"He used to go to the soccer field and practice whatever soccer players practice when he could get any spare time. I guess it was how he relaxed."

Tommy shook his head. He guessed that he really hadn't known anyone on the original power team as well as he thought he had. He thought of the example of Billy and Trini. He had not gotten to know them at all until they had all been at UCLA together. He thought he understood what had happened between them. He had been wrong. Now, he wasn't even sure that he knew Billy anymore after what had happened just before he went to Hawaii. It was just another way that he had been clinging to the past. For some reason, being around all these guys who had bad breaks in their life and had moved on successfully, made him think about whether or not he had truly moved on.

He was so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn't even see Conner and the Angel Grove coach who he and Billy thought was Adam coming over to them.

"Guys!" Conner was saying. "This is Coach Park!"

It was Adam all right. He smiled broadly at Tommy and Billy. "It's great to see you guys again. Conner tells me that you teach at Reefside High School."

Tommy rolled his eyes and shook Adam's hand. "I see you're a soccer coach."

Adam shrugged as he shook Billy's hand. "I'm a coach and teach a little History on the side so I can remain a coach." He paused. "What are you guys up to?"

"He's on a sabbatical," Billy said indicating Tommy. "I'm teaching his classes while he's off having fun."

Adam laughed. Billy's cell phone rang. He answered it and then the situation began to play out like some kind of bad soap opera.

"Hello?" Billy said into the phone. "Andros, what's going on?" He paused and they could hear the slight mumble of the person on the other end. "How did a common computer virus end up on a zord? Did you isolate it?" He paused again. "It's only on the Stego-Zord. What was it affecting… motor commands… Can we get rid of it? Good. Did you scan the rest of the zords to make sure it really is only on that zord? Yeah… the game is over, we'll be there in a few minutes. Scan the rest of the zords for it. Okay. Bye."

The woman who had overheard Billy earlier was telling her son about the computer game he and his Boy Scout troop were designing. Luckily enough, they were heading towards the parking lot along with the rest of the people who had been watching the game. Adam's expression looked stricken.

"You guys are rangers again?" he asked softly as Billy hung up on Andros.

"He is," Billy said pointing to Tommy. "I'm not."

"What's going on?" Adam asked.

Tommy and Billy exchanged glances. There was no way they were going to be able to brush Adam off about the whole thing. They might as well tell him the whole story.

"Let me guess," Kira said. "He's an ex-ranger too?"

"Are you a ranger now?" Adam countered.

"They're rangers now," Tommy said to Adam. "He was a ranger," he said to the kids and Hayley. "Can you follow us back to my place?" he asked Adam. "I can explain the whole situation then." 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note: (b)** Thanks for all the reviews! I appreciate all the input from people more Wild Force savvy than me. I have extensive knowledge of Power Rangers up through about the second movie, then it skips to Lost Galaxy and then it skips to Dino Thunder. Since who Cole is dating is not really relevant to the story as a whole, I changed his girlfriend to Alyssa since the consensus is that they are the believable couple. I also altered the conversation at the restaurant to reflect the fact that Eric knows who all the Wild Force rangers are. Thanks a bunch to all who contributed to that! With that, here I go with reviewer responses for people who reviewed chapter 5:

**cmar**- Ah, cmar, the bane of my fan fiction existence. Want to be my beta reader? lol Don't apologize for the outburst- it was grounded and legitimate. I see what you mean and will try my best to reduce those occurrences in following chapters. Although, because I have so many characters going and everyone has their favorite, I'm trying to include everyone at all times. (Probably not the best idea.) However, I see your point. Let me know if it starts happening to an extreme.

**Funky In Fishnet**- One of my reasons for slightly altering the last chapter. I see your reasoning concerning the Wild Force and Time Force couples and whatnot. Thanks for your insight on that-- like I've said, not savvy on those particular incarnations and any help from reviewers there is most welcome! Thank you so much for your kind words as well!

**jim hawking jr**- Thanks for your sweet review! In one of your earlier reviews, you asked me about the Ninja Storm red ranger and why he wouldn't be a part of the distress signal. That question will be answered in later chapters, I promise. Once more, thanks for the kind words!

**Katalia**- Thank you so much for your insight on Wild Force and Time Force. As I have said before, I'm not entirely up to speed on the history there. The chapters have been altered slightly to reflect the history you told me. Although, I'm sure that Eric and Taylor would have been happy together, they aren't going to appear as a couple in this fic. But once more, thank you for your insight!

**the-power-of-love**- Glad you like the story! Thanks for the kind words!

**SilverRider**- Glad you like the story. Eric is supposed to be some of the comic relief, so I'm glad to see its working.

**white time ranger**- I can't tell you if Jen is coming back! That would spoil the story! :) As I said before, patience is a virtue! But I'm glad you like the story-- Ghostbusters is one of my favorite movies as well. Keep reading and I'll keep writing!


	7. Trying Too Hard

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Seven: Trying Too Hard**

Elsa looked at the readings. It was hard to surmise much from them, but she would normally have said that the sporadic flashes of concentrated energy were coming from Dino-Gems. Now, she could not be sure of anything. The readings were coming from the woods and it was quite possible that Oliver and his power brats already knew about the readings. Then again, it could be a mere computer malfunction that was confused. Lord Mesogog had not said anything about the existence of Dino-Gems outside the five that already existed and had owners… and were unfortunately under the control of Doctor Oliver.

Her other problem also pertained to the readings. She was picking up readings of ten people who had been Power Rangers, but were not currently using their powers. They did not use Dino-Gems for their powers at any rate. At least three of them still had their morphers with them and the others might, it was hard to say from the readings. That was just great. Somehow Oliver had expanded his numbers from five to fifteen in the span of twenty-four hours.

She sighed. Lord Mesogog was not going to be happy about any of this. He had already lost Zeltrax and Trent to Oliver. She was the best help he had left. The Tyranno-drones were no help in planning and strategy. They were good for brute force, but could not win a battle unless they severely outnumbered the opponent. She needed to find out what those strange readings really were. She also needed to find out how many of the former rangers still had the ability to morph so she could better prepare for upcoming battles.

"The gems are moving."

Startled at the low hiss, she turned around to see Mesogog coming into the room. "What, my Lord?" she asked, wishing she could avoid eye contact with him but knowing she would be punished for not meeting his gaze.

"The gems are moving," the reptile-man repeated, a slight edge of irritation creeping into his voice. She fought the urge to shudder. "There are other gems," he continued. "And they are moving."

"How-how can you be sure?" she stammered. This was incredible. Why had he not mentioned the other gems before?

"They have been in hiding," Mesogog replied. "Their owners are drawing nearer. We must find those gems before the owners do."

"But how? If they are still in hiding-"

"Silence," he replied in a menacing tone. "You will follow Oliver and his disciples. Stay away at a distance and do not let them know you are following them. They will lead you to those gems. Once they find the gems, bring them to me." He paused. "You may have to use your disguise."

Elsa smiled knowingly. Her alter ego as Principal Randall would throw those ex-rangers for a loop. They didn't know who to trust and who not to. Oliver had probably not told them about his boss from work. They wouldn't recognize her.

"Once we have those gems," Mesogog was saying. "We will have enough power to destroy the Power Rangers and my dream will reign on this earth!" He glanced at her. "Go!" he hissed. She turned and hurried from the room.

* * *

"Hand me a wrench, will you Andros?"

Andros looked down at the tools beside him and picked up one of the wrenches, passing it upward to TJ. The Turbo ranger was on the scaffolding right above him, working on one of the arms of the Tyranno-Zord. He was trying to rewire one of the sections of the zord that had taken a hit during the last battle. TJ was double-checking bolts and joints, making sure that they were loose enough for the limb to move effectively, but not so loose that the limb fell off. He glanced over to Carter and Eric, who were working on welding pieces of the Stego-Zord back on. The zord's back had taken a beating and some of fins had come loose and some had just fallen off completely.

In all his time as a Ranger, Andros had never seen zords take this kind of beating and still be able to function. He supposed that they were different from almost all the zords that had preceded them, with perhaps the exception of the Galacta-Beasts. The zords that the Galaxy Ranger had used were much more animal like and less like robots than all the previous zords. Tommy had said that these were even more different from that. These were technically called 'biozords' and the inventors had used dinosaur DNA for the neural functions. All the zords had been shut down for the repairs, but it seemed to Andros that they would have much more personality than the previous zords.

Billy and Hayley were at the control panel and Hayley did not look happy. Andros got the feeling that Billy was actually her superior when it came to the programs involved in a Power Grid, but she was never going to admit that. Right now, they were arguing about whether or not Hayley had gotten Billy's help with her undergraduate work.

"You were always asking me for help," Billy was muttering as he looked at technical schematics of the zords.

"I was not," Hayley replied through clenched teeth.

"Who was the one who called me when her computer died, hmmm?"

Hayley's cheeks turned pink. Above him, TJ laughed. "You would think they're married," he said in an undertone as he pulled a can of WD-40 out of his pocket to oil the joints.

Andros snorted. "I'm married. I don't think married people argue about stuff quite that ridiculous."

"Just because you and Ashley don't argue about stupid things doesn't make it a generalization for all married people," Carter called. He and Eric were surveying their handy work from the latest fin they had repaired.

"And what do you and Dana argue about?" TJ asked, handing the wrench back down to Andros and asking for a screwdriver.

Andros passed the screwdriver up. "Bread twist ties," Carter replied seriously.

Eric laughed. "Let me guess, you don't think they're necessary and she thinks that all bread will go bad if there isn't one there."

"She's not quite that dramatic, but that's the gist of it."

They all laughed and Carter and Eric went back to welding. TJ swung down from the scaffolding so that he was next to Andros. "I think Hayley just feels like someone is invading her turf, so she's trying to look good and failing."

"Do you blame her?" Andros replied as he finished the wiring and double-checked his work. He picked up the metal panel to screw back into place.

"Not really," TJ agreed. "I'd probably feel the same way if I was her." He held the panel in place while Andros was working on the screws.

"Although I do think Billy knows his way around a Power Grid slightly better."

"He was either a ranger or helping with the team all the way through the Zeo powers," TJ said. "If he didn't, then we might have a reason to worry about him."

Andros nodded. Billy had not been there for a lot of their initial repairs. He had to go to work and try to teach his classes something. He had shown up shortly after three. All of the former red rangers had either taken vacation from work or feigned extended illness. In Andros case, he had just used all the vacation days he had saved up. Some of them had their own businesses with partners or underlings who could handle the place until they got back. And some of them had jobs that let them design their own work schedule, so it was easy to just take off.

They were almost done with the repairs. If they worked through tonight, they would have all of it finished. Even if they stopped at dinner time, the rest of the repairs were superfluous and the zords would run well if they couldn't complete them. The rest of the repairs could be done in the morning with little to no trouble. There was some welding left to do and the rest of the joints had to be checked, but it was going well.

He finished screwing the panel back on. TJ folded all the tools they had up in the towel they had been lying on and scrambled down the scaffolding to the ground. Andros followed him and was surprised to find Ashley standing there looking up at the zords.

"Ash? What are you doing in here?"

She gave him a withering glance. "Watching you guys work." She sighed. "I feel so worthless. No one wants me to do anything."

He gently laid his hands on her shoulders. "Everyone wants you to take it easy. We're," he caught himself. "I'm worried about you."

"Andros, I was fine when I had Brian."

"And I worried then. Why should this be any different?"

She smiled. "You're an overprotective watchdog."

He returned the smile. "I know."

* * *

Tommy stared at the sign someone had taped on his front door. It read _Cole's Bed and Breakfast_. He rolled his eyes at it, wondering which smartass had put that on the door thinking they were funny. It was a jibe at the fact that Cole had been cooking breakfast every morning. In slight retaliation of the jabs he endured for it, Cole was letting the rest of them take turn cooking the rest of the meals. Tommy didn't blame him. He wouldn't want to be the official cook for this bunch of wild savages.

He was sitting in a lawn chair on his front porch. The chair had been positioned at the head of the picnic table. Conner, Ethan, Kira and Trent were sitting at the picnic table. Hayley was noticeably absent because she was down in the lab trying to prevent Billy from redoing all the systems she had spent so much time designing. He didn't want to get into the middle of that argument. Hayley could get vicious and Billy was good at ignoring her, which made her even angrier when she was itching for a fight.

The only person Tommy could think of who was guaranteed to give her a fight if she wanted one was Eric and last time he had checked, Eric was behind a torch. Not a good person to pick a fight with.

"So what's going on, Doctor O?" Kira asked, bringing him out of his reverie.

He shook his head to clear it. He had called them all here to talk about what was going on. "The zords are almost completely repaired."

"That's good," Ethan said.

"And the search for the Dino-Gems is going on as we speak. I'm not sure if they'll find anything though."

"We could have looked for the gems," Conner muttered.

Tommy sighed. He should have expected this. He could see the betrayal written all over Conner's face. They would want to know why he had brought all these outside people in, when they could have done the repairs and searched for the gems themselves.

"I know you guys think that I shouldn't have brought all these people here."

"You can say that again," Kira said under her breath.

"But this would have taken us much longer had we not had the help."

"We should have done it that way then!" Conner said in an impassioned voice. "We don't need all this help! We don't know these people!"

"I know these people," Tommy countered. "What if Mesogog attacked and the zords were in the state they had been in yesterday? What if Mesogog finds out that the gems are trying to come out of hiding?"

"He's probably already looking for the gems if he has a brain," Ethan replied.

"He probably is. And if we have more people then we can find it faster than a bunch of dumb Tyranno-drones."

"I still don't understand," Trent said. Tommy noticed that he had been silent throughout the first part of the exchange, trying to absorb everything. "Are you hoping that the other gems will bond with some of these people?"

"I hadn't thought about that," he replied. "I cannot control who the gems choose. I'd be lying if I said I didn't think it would be good if the gems bonded with one of them." He paused. "Look, I know you don't fully understand this. I've told you my reasoning. We needed the extra manpower. You can be angry with me for not consulting you about it. I'd understand that."

The look on their faces confirmed that that had been the toughest part for them—why had they not been informed before the former red rangers showed up? He and Hayley had discussed it and decided, but had left the rest of the team out. He had not even thought of that until recently.

"I apologize for not consulting you guys," he said softly. "We're all a part of the same team and it was wrong of me not to include you."

"It's hard to go from being a teacher to a part of a team?" Conner asked with a note of disgust in his voice.

Tommy nodded mutely.

Conner stood up. "We've go to go."

He watched as the four teens walked to Conner's car and drove off. God, he felt like such an idiot now. Why hadn't they lambasted him when they first saw all the people here? He supposed that it took some time to dawn on them what had really happened. He sincerely hoped that he had not just caused an irreparable rift in their team. Feeling worse and worse about what he had ultimately done to the team, he went back into the house.

* * *

The ranks who had been searching for the gems had come back empty-handed. Leo walked out onto the back porch and sat on the steps. Everything was so noisy in the house—there were too many people. He was used to being able to take a walk on the beach or just sit someplace in his house and be alone with his thoughts. That luxury was not afforded to anyone in this situation. He could recall many times when he would disappear into one of the forests on Terra Venture, just so he could think. Once he had shut the back door behind him and the noise of the house had disappeared behind it, he knew this is what he needed. The twilight air was cool and the crickets sang in the distance.

It was frustrating. The readings they had received from the gems were strong enough to follow them with a scanner, yet when they had supposedly been standing right on top of them, they couldn't find them. It made him nervous to think that something inanimate like a rock would have the kind of capability to hide from someone. And move… it made him glad that the Quasar Sabers had just been stuck in a rock… not rocks that moved around did weird things.

'All we want to do is find these rocks and protect them,' he thought. 'No one looking for them wants their powers to be rangers. We all had our share of that a long time ago.'

He sighed. There was still a sufficient amount of light if he wanted to take a walk or something. That would probably be the best thing for him—get away from all the madness that seemed to reign whenever the nine of them were in the same general place. He stood up, shoving his hands into the pockets of his jacket and taking off through the trees.

The forest was actually really beautiful this time of night. The last rays of sun glowed through the trees casting a golden glow on the foliage. He could see why Tommy liked living out here. It was much the same reason that he lived on the beach—falling in love with the scenery and serenity that it offered. He always felt better after a walk on the beach. Well, there was no beach here and the forest would just have to do.

He thought briefly of Kendrix. He needed to call her when he got back to the house and he would probably be staying on the back porch to do it. There was not much privacy here or anywhere. At the hotel, he and Carter shared a room while Jason and Wes were in the adjoining room. The door that connected the two rooms was always open. There were five people in addition to Tommy staying at the former Zeo Ranger's house. That didn't include the various drop-ins from Hayley, Billy or any of the Dino Thunder Rangers. The Dino Thunder Rangers… he got the distinct feeling from the limited interaction that he had had with them that they didn't appreciate the former red rangers' presence. In fact, they seemed to downright resent it. Hayley had been grumpy because Billy was rewiring and reprogramming her systems for greater efficiency. He shook his head. He hadn't imagined such a territory war would break out.

It was also something he didn't understand. When the Space Rangers had come without an invitation to help them out, he had been relieved and grateful. He didn't understand why they were so hostile. Tommy said it was because they hadn't been consulted. If that held true, then he should have been angry with Alpha when she sent out the distress signal to the Space Rangers, because she hadn't consulted them. Of course, he had been older when becoming a ranger. He wasn't still in high school. He supposed that if he were still in high school, he might feel that way, however unlikely.

He stopped. This was the place that the scanner had said the gems were, but they hadn't found anything. There was something different here. It was like a warm, pulsing energy was running through the place. The wind picked up in a sudden gust and howled… no. It wasn't howling. It was roaring, roaring with rage, with indignation, with pain… He shivered. He had better get back. The atmosphere was getting creepy out here.

A blast of light from the ground nearly threw him backwards. There was a glowing from the ground—a mix of orange, pink, purple and green light. His heart began to race. They had searched all afternoon for the gems. These couldn't be the gems now. Hands and legs shaking, he went over to the light and cleared away the top layer of leaves.

Nestled just underneath the leaves were four rocks—orange, pink, purple and green. They matched the description Tommy had given them of the gems. He picked them up and put them in his pocket. He had to get back to the house now.

Turning around, he was blinded by a bright green light.

He blinked and saw a woman standing there. She had short black hair and was dressed like some sort of office professional. Her garb completely clashed with someone who he would normally expect to find in the middle of the woods.

"Where did you come from?" It was a dumb question, but the first that came to mind.

The woman ignored his question. "I am Elsa Randall from the Reefside Geologic Society. Are you aware that you are violating county laws if you remove those stones from their natural setting?"

Leo stared at her. That sounded like a bunch of nonsense to him. "Then write me a ticket," he snapped and tried to walk past her. She grabbed his upper arm with an iron grip that made him wince and stop.

"I'm afraid the consequences are much more severe than a fine. I am afraid that I would have to arrest you if you go any further with those stones."

"Lady, you're not a cop. You can't arrest me."

He twisted his arm out of her grip and started to walk back towards the house. He didn't make it very far, because he received a kick right between the shoulder blades and fell flat on his face, along with having the wind knocked out of him. His thigh landed painfully on the gems and he winced. He was going to feel that tomorrow morning. Leo rolled over and pushed himself back up.

"Look, lady, I don't know what you're problem is."

"Oh, I've already stated my problem." She looked menacing. She aimed a punch at his chest, but he deflected it. Not knowing what else to do, he turned and ran as fast as he could. If he could get back to Tommy's house, he would be all right. He didn't stop to see if the crazy lady was following him or not, he just ran.

It was seconds, it was years before he saw Tommy's back porch with Cole and Tommy sitting on the back steps.

"Leo!" Cole called. "We had wondered where you got off to."

Tommy stared at him. "What happened to you?"

Leo, drawing in deep breaths, turned around and didn't see the slightest sign of the woman. Just like those fanatic environmentalist types, they couldn't complete a fight. "Some insane woman from some geologic society was chasing me," he said simply. "Because I picked up some rocks." He pulled the gems out of his pocket and handed them to Tommy. The man stared at them and then a smile broke out over his face.

"What are they?" Cole asked.

"I think they're the missing Dino-Gems," Leo replied.

Tommy nodded slowly. "They are." 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note: **Thanks for all the reviews guys! I know this fic is getting really full of characters-- let me know if you think someone is getting shoved in the background. However, it should be obvious really soon who is really important to the story and who isn't. Keep all the constructive criticism coming! I also have one humble request-- you guys are welcome to recommend fics to me. I'll do my best to read them and review. lol But once more, thanks! -Etcy (Sorry, no reviewer responses, History of Science test and Poly Sci paper on Thursday!)


	8. It's Been A Long Time

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Eight: It's Been A Long Time**

Ah, Starbucks, the bane of his existence. After all the years he had been drinking Starbucks coffee, Wes still marveled at the fact that he forked over mass amounts of money for coffee that he could probably get at home for cheaper. It had to be some kind of trap that forced people to pay too much for coffee. He had resigned himself to the fate of stopping in a Starbucks every time he passed one a long time ago. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. And he had joined the Starbucks Anonymous group.

He, Adam and Billy had decided to go to Starbucks just to get away from the madness at Tommy's house for a while. Mostly, he and the other red rangers had goofed around all day, completing the remaining repairs and helping 'tidy up' the lab (which a gotten to be quite a mess with several different people working on zords at once.) Adam and Billy had come over after they got off work and had helped test drive all of the zords to make sure that they were in full working order. Noticeably absent from the proceedings had been Hayley and the Dino Thunder rangers. Wes found that to be decidedly odd. What kind of team left the fate of their zords in the hands of complete strangers?

He shook his head. Billy had gone home for dinner and to check in with his daughters. It almost made Wes wonder if those girls got left on their own all the time. Now Billy was back and making the Starbucks run. A lot of people had placed orders, but Wes had chosen to ignore them—if they weren't coming along, he wasn't getting them anything. That was Eric's bad influence right there. Eric tended to not care about people with a few exceptions. He had his select bunch and ignored the rest. That was part of the reason Wes was so amazed that he had bonded with TJ and Cole so quickly back on that mission to the moon.

Billy parked his car in the Starbucks parking lot and the three of them got out of the car. Wes could smell the coffee. If nothing else, he loved coffee. A petite woman with brown hair, wearing a pink blouse walked into the Starbucks in front of them. For a brief fleeting moment, Wes thought she was Jen, but then shook his head. She was shorter and her hair was much browner than Jen's. He needed to get over her and stop wishing that she would just show up from the future. She wasn't going to do that and he knew it.

"Kim?"

He snapped to attention when Billy addressed the woman. The woman turned around and looked at Billy and Adam for moment. Then her face broke into a grin. "Billy? Adam?" she squealed and then hugged them. "How have you guys been? I haven't seen you in forever!" She gave both of them hugs.

Wes tried to keep his eye from twitching. This situation seemed to be the theme for the pseudo-reunion. All these old rangers (who didn't happen to be former red rangers) kept on running into each other. Was there some kind of subconscious signal that was going out to all former rangers when the red rangers got together? They were all coming to Reefside! He felt like running out onto the streets screaming 'they're coming.' He didn't do that. He kept his feet planted with a vague smile on his face.

"Is your eye twitching?" the woman, presumably Kim, asked.

Billy laughed. "That happens to him when he gets overwhelmed."

She then glanced at his chrono-mopher on his wrist. He had brought the morpher along just in case an occasion called for it. At this point in time, it was seeming a lot like overkill since he had yet to be attacked. "That is a serious watch," she commented.

He managed a wan smile. Adam decided it would be a good idea to introduce Wes to this strange woman. "Kim," he started. "This is Wes Collins." Adam had been introduced to the whole lot of them after Conner's soccer game and took it all in stride. "Wes, this is Kimberly Hart."

Kimberly Hart… why should that name ring a bell? Wes sucked in a breath. She was the original Pink Ranger and she was Tommy's old flame. So this was the girl that Tommy had been in love with after she dumped him. She seemed a little… cheerleader-like… a little too much for his tastes, but some guys went for that. He refrained from shrugging as they took turns ordering coffee. He could have used a shot of whiskey, but that wasn't forthcoming. For a brief moment, he thought about what it would be like to get drunk with all the participants in the 'distress signal.' As quickly as he that thought, he banished it. It was too frightening.

The four of them picked a table to drink their coffee at. He found it way too much of a coincidence that three former rangers—people who had been rangers with Tommy—had all managed to land in Reefside. But he figured he shouldn't read too much into it.

"So why are you guys in Reefside?" Kim was asking Billy and Adam.

"I'm not," Adam said with a laugh. "I'm the soccer coach at Angel Grove High."

"I'm teaching at the high school," Billy replied. "Taking over Tommy's classes actually."

Kim paled. "Tommy Oliver?" she whispered.

"Yeah," Billy replied, obviously not concerned that she was uncomfortable.

She stood up. "Why is he here?" she asked them. Wes stared at her. He could talk, he had just chosen to do a minimum of it this evening. "He's an ex-ranger, isn't he?" she said loudly.

Billy clapped a hand over her mouth and forced her back to her seat. "Tommy's one of the current rangers," Billy whispered. "We're all here helping him and his team."

"Why didn't he call me?" she hissed. "I could have helped. All I'm doing is teaching gymnastics at the academy here."

"I suspect it was because he didn't have your current phone number."

She looked shocked that he had just spoken. Wes gave her a look that clearly said 'what?' He raised his eyebrows at her. What he wouldn't have given to have Trip around in situations like this.

"Kim," Adam said softly. "Tommy doesn't need anymore help. Me and Billy showed up on accident. We weren't called in to help." He indicated Wes. "He called the former red rangers in to help."

"I want to see him."

Wes sighed. Either this woman was seriously regressing or she had just never matured beyond high school. He was willing to give her the benefit of the doubt and assume the former. Although the latter wasn't seeming to far off target. Forget him needing a drink, she needed a drink more than he did.

Adam and Billy exchanged glances. "I don't think that's a good idea," Adam said softly.

Kimberly sighed, her face looking resigned. "Maybe you're right." She paused. "I mean we haven't seen each other in years."

Wes was nodding, not trusting himself to speak. If he did speak, something scathing was going to come out and he was going to regret it. He really needed to limit the amount of time he spent with Eric. Kimberly was staring at his bobbing head.

"And what do you know about it?" she asked sharply.

He shrugged and made his eyes go wide. Billy snickered. "I know more about it than you think I know about it," he muttered.

"Really?" Her voice was sarcastic.

"Really, really," he replied.

"Look," Kimberly said, directing her attention back to Billy and Adam. "I want to know what's going on. I want to help." She paused. "And it's probably time that Tommy and I had a talk about some things."

"Past time," Wes said under his breath.

Billy sighed and stood up. "Let's go," he said motioning to Kimberly.

* * *

Work on the new morphers was going well. Tommy had put the four missing Dino-Gems into a briefcase and locked them in the vault in the lab. He almost wished he knew who the owners of these gems were, because then he could bring them here and save them a lot of security hassle. Ah well. At least they had the gems and they knew that the gems weren't destined to be owned by Leo or Cole since both of them had handled the gems and the gems had not bonded with them. He glanced at Andros, who was working on the morpher for the orange gem.

He thought about why Ashley had come along. TJ had said that she didn't want Andros to go anywhere without her. It was akin to fear of having the baby alone. Tommy thought that was kind of silly since if she called Andros the moment she went into labor, he could make it to Angel Grove in plenty of time to see the baby born. Unless she was only in labor for an hour, which he seriously doubted. Then again, Carter used to say that Dana went neurotic when she was pregnant, so maybe the same principle held true.

He sighed. Whatever the reasoning, it was between Andros and Ashley and it was really none of his business. He glanced at the orange gem lying next to the partially completed morpher. They had run some scans on the gems to see which zord they linked to. The orange gem was linked to the Ankylo-Zord. The pink was linked to the Stego-Zord and the purple was linked to the Cephalo-Zord. The green gem had not shown any signs of being linked to a biozord that was already awake. They would have to wait and see. Billy had run some scans earlier that indicated what powers the gems might have—green was telekinesis, orange was phasing, pink was teleportation and purple was telepathy. Tommy wasn't going to ask how Billy had discovered that. Billy had his ways.

Tommy put the finishing touches on the green morpher. He had decided to make it a 'lock and key' morpher like his own. That also meant that the suit would look like his, but be predominantly green where his was black. The orange, pink and purple morphers were like the others with the head of the dinosaur on it.

Andros put down the screwdriver he had been using and rubbed his eyes. "Tired?" Tommy asked, sympathetically. They had already completed the pink and purple morphers, so if the finishing touches on the orange one had to wait until morning, that was fine.

"Tired of waiting," Andros countered.

"Ashley?"

"Among other things." Andros sighed. "I don't know. Part of me wants her here so I can be near her to protect her and be present the entire time she's having the baby. The other part of me wants her as far away from this as possible." He paused. "I just have a bad feeling about all of this."

"Precognition?"

"No, it's much more elusive than that."

"It's not too late to send her back to Angel Grove. I'm sure that Wes could put her on one of those puddle-jumper flights."

Andros shook his head. "I'd want her further from here than Angel Grove. I'd probably want her with my sister and brother-in-law in New York." He sighed again. "But I can't force her to go anywhere. And she won't go anywhere." He picked up the screwdriver again and put the top panel of the morpher into place. "I'm worried about her," Andros ended softly.

"We all are," Tommy replied. And it was true. Even Hayley and the kids were worried about Ashley even though they resented everyone else's presence and the kids were still angry with him for, to their minds, thinking they were inferior.

Andros looked up, a ghost of a smile floating over his face. "Thanks," he replied softly. "I shouldn't worry. She's got more people here intent on protecting her than she would anywhere else."

Tommy laughed and decided to pick up a new thread of conversation. "I didn't know your sister lived in New York. I thought she was still on Mirinoi."

"She just moved there. I had thought that her and Zhane were going back to KO 35 when they told me they were moving from the planet. Then they told me that it was going to be New York."

"Do you worry about her?"

Andros snickered. "Karone used to be one of the worst villains a ranger team ever had to face. I worry about her very little." They both laughed. Tommy knew that Andros was glad that Karone was no longer evil. He was fairly certain that Karone had been the Pink Galaxy ranger for a while, but he wasn't sure. He'd have to double-check with Leo, who probably knew more about it than Andros. (And was probably more sensitive to that subject since it involved Kendrix's 'death' in a matter of speaking.)

Tommy glanced up as he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Adam and Billy appeared and were followed by… Kimberly?

* * *

Elsa sighed. She had to tell Mesogog that she had failed to retrieve the gems. One of those former rangers had beaten her to it. She could picture the one who took those gems from her and she wanted to kill him. He was one of the cocky ones, one of the ones who thought that nothing could defeat him no matter what. She would show him. He would be the first to feel her wrath. He would regret ever taking those gems to Oliver.

This is where she really missed Zeltrax. He was good at a one-on-one fight (unless the fight was against Oliver, then it was not so good.) Well, she had at least determined how many of the former rangers had their morphers or could still morph in some odd way. Seven of them… one of those seven could still tap into the power, even though he was morpher-less. The eighth one no longer could even tap into his power. That meant that he would be harder to track than the others, but it was a small matter. Mesogog might be pleased with that information. Of course, he might be angry that so many of them could morph.

"Where are the gems?" The low hiss of Mesogog's voice invaded her ears. She tried not to gulp and turned around to face him. He looked like he already knew the answer, but was waiting for her to confirm it.

"One of Dr. Oliver's minions beat me to them." She said it as softly as possible, thinking that it might help the situation.

"You failed to retrieve those gems?" It hadn't helped.

His voice, although not rising in volume, was rising in anger. She couldn't speak—her mouth had suddenly gone as dry as the Sahara. She nodded. Mesogog hissed angrily. So many things had gone wrong. He had failed to get all of the Dino-Gems before Oliver and it was obvious that it was making him angry.

"Oliver has those gems?"

It was really a rhetorical question. Mesogog already knew the answer. If one of Oliver's minions had the gems, then by now Oliver surely had them. She nodded again. Mesogog growled.

"Then we shall have to retrieve those gems from him." Mesogog stepped over to the Geno-Randomizer. "Must I do everything myself?"

"What should I do, Master?"

Mesogog whirled around. "Stay out of my way!" he snapped and went back to his work. Elsa sucked in a deep breath and fled from the room.

Once out in the hallway, she sank down onto the floor. She had better not tell him about the rangers that could morph. He would only be more furious.

* * *

Cole looked up at the zords in the now-quiet zord bay. It was always a humbling experience to be standing in front of one's zord and look up at the sheer size of it. It made you think about what kind of power the zords held and how it protected you more than once, how it saved your very life taking blows meant for you. All of these zords were sleeping. They would probably wake up once the rangers who owned them needed them. The Tricera-Zord opened one friendly red eye and winked at him. Cole grinned. At least the zords weren't angry with all the help.

He sighed. The emergency seemed to be over for the most part, yet everyone was reluctant to leave. It was like a storm brewing and it had yet to break loose. He knew that the others had felt it, which was why all the repairs were stretched out until this morning, why they had waited until tonight to start building the morphers, why Carter hadn't finished working on Tommy's Jeep until this afternoon. It was like they would all be needed soon. Well, he wouldn't be much use in a battle. All his powers had gone back to Princess Shayla. He didn't have a morpher, he didn't have ranger powers like the others.

For some reason, Jason could still tap into his powers, even though the original power coins had been destroyed. TJ had his Turbo morpher and Andros had his astro-morpher. Leo had brought his Quasar Saber and morpher from Mirinoi to Earth. Carter could easily get his morpher from his father-in-law and Wes and Eric still had their chrono-morphers. Maybe he could still tap into his powers if he concentrated hard enough or something. Cole didn't know.

"Hey."

Cole turned around to see Tommy coming into the zord bay. "Hey," he replied. "How are you holding up?"

Tommy shrugged. "I hadn't expected Kim to show up here wanting to know what's going on and why I didn't call her." He paused. "Billy and Adam have huge mouths!"

"Maybe they thought they were helping?" Cole suggested.

Tommy just growled and kicked at one of the crates in the zord bay. The Ptero-Zord opened its eyes and squawked indignantly before going back to sleep. Cole couldn't decide if Tommy looked defeated or angry. It was probably a combination of both. Tommy sank down onto the crate he had just kicked. Cole sat beside him.

"Has she changed?" Cole asked.

"I can't decide," Tommy replied. "One minute she seems like the mature woman I would have imagined she'd have grown into and then one minute she seems like a high schooler again." He paused. "I mean you would think that winning gold at the Pan Globals would have made her grow up."

"How old was she when she went?"

"Seventeen."

Cole shook his head. "That's really young to have already gotten something you've dreamt of for years. It's like burning out. You've achieved everything you ever wanted when you were so young, nothing else holds any luster."

Tommy cocked his head to one side. "What are you saying?"

"Maybe she's subconsciously regressing as a way to cope with what the world expects her public image to be like."

"Were you a psychology major?"

Cole smiled. "Minor."

The current Black Ranger shook his head and sighed. "I don't know what I was expecting her to be, but it seems like we've both been expecting something that's not there."

"It happens," Cole replied.

They sat in a comfortable silence just looking up at the zords for a moment. Cole could see what was happening to Tommy. He had loved Kim for so long that he had put her up on a pedestal and invented attributes to her that didn't exist. She had probably done the same for him and here they were, meeting again after so long and discovering that what they had held onto didn't exist in the real world.

"I think it's time I put the past away for good," Tommy said softly, startling Cole out of his reverie. "Kim and I had our time together. Maybe that was enough."

Muffled voices came from the lab. "I think someone is snooping around," Cole joshed, a grin spreading over his face.

"Well, I think we should stop them from snooping," Tommy replied, a mischievous glint coming into his eyes. He motioned Cole to come quietly and they stealthily came out of the zord bay and into the main lab. It was probably just Leo or Jason or someone along those lines causing trouble for the sake of causing trouble.

There was no one in the main lab. The voices were coming from the vault. Cole changed his idea about who was down here. It might be Andros checking the security on the morphers because he had helped build them. The vault door was open and they hid behind some crates. The vantage point was rather good. They could see into the vault and the people in there couldn't see them.

However, all his theories about who might be down there were wrong. Billy and Adam were showing Kimberly the completed morphers and the Dino-Gems. That's right- they had been trying to be nice to her and giving her a grand tour. Cole exchanged a glance with Tommy. They couldn't hear what they were saying. He watched, half in horror and half in fascination as the three of them picked up the orange, green and pink gems and the respective gems flashed a brighter shade of their color. If those gems hadn't just bonded with those three, then Cole had no idea what just happened. And from Tommy's expression, that was exactly what had happened. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Thanks for all the reviews! I have two major questions that anyone who knows is free to answer. 1) What does 'GSA' stand for? (It's the space organization in Lost Galaxy... for all my research I don't know that.) That is more curiosity than anything else. 2) Did Wild Force ever team up with Ninja Storm? That's all for my questions. Thanks once more for the reviews! -Etcy


	9. the Challenge of Our Rival

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Nine: the Challenge of Our Rival**

Kira Ford wandered upstairs from the lab. The tests with the 'powers' of the new Dino-Gems were still going on. And she was fairly certain that Doctor O wanted Billy, Adam and Kimberly to master the powers before the night was over. Not seeing any reason for her continued presence, she had decided to come upstairs and see if there was a cup of tea or soda available. The living room was empty, but she could hear muffled male voices coming from the back porch. That was another reason to finish these tests. The three guys who had been staying in Tommy's living room probably wanted to get to bed when it was still a decent hour.

The light was on in the kitchen. She froze in the doorway. Ashley, Andros' wife and the one she was pretty sure had been the Yellow Space Ranger, was pouring hot water into a mug with a tea bag. Ashley looked up at her presence.

"I'm-I'm sorry," Kira stammered. "I didn't know anyone was in here."

"No, it's all right," Ashley replied with an easy smile. "Did you want something?"

"I was just looking for something to drink."

"Do you want some tea?"

Kira nodded, not saying anything. She felt guilty watching Ashley get another mug and pour hot water over the tea bag. That woman should not be allowed to do anything in her condition. She looked like she could have the baby on the spot. Ashley motioned for her to sit at the table and she sank into a chair. Ashley put the cups of tea on the table in front of them and sat down heavily.

"Now, you're Kira, aren't you?" Ashley asked.

She nodded again. "And you're Ashley, the Yellow Space Ranger."

Ashley smiled. "And Turbo Ranger." She paused. "That seems like such a long time ago."

"Why are you up? I mean shouldn't you be resting or something?"

The former Yellow Ranger laughed at the confusion written all over her face. "This happened to me when I had Brian. I couldn't sleep well about two days before he was born. I don't see any reason for this to be different."

"Is it a boy or a girl?"

"I don't know. I didn't want to know." Ashley paused. "Although I think, somewhere deep down, I want it to be a girl. I mean I already have a boy."

Kira smiled. However, none of that was what she really wanted to know. Why had Ashley come along on a mission that could get potentially dangerous when she was about to have a baby? It didn't make any sense. Ashley obviously could see the question written all over Kira's face from her next words.

"I came here because I want Andros to be present when his child is born."

"But aren't you guys from Angel Grove? It's not that far to drive. I'm sure if he speeded on the freeway or something he'd have made it in plenty of time."

Ashley shook her head. "It's not that simple. He would do that if the mission was leisurely enough. However, for everyone here, being a ranger comes before everything else, including your wife having a baby." She paused. "I know how he feels because I was a ranger too. I came because if I'm present, he will be reminded that some things can be elevated to the level of being a ranger."

"Sounds like you have a rough marriage."

She laughed. "Normally not. There's normally not ranger missions involved in our marriage. It's normally much more boring that this." She paused. "But how many chances do you have to be involved in helping create new rangers?"

Kira smiled. "Obviously not many." It was her turn to pause. "I just wish that we had been consulted before Doctor O activated that distress signal."

Ashley shrugged. "Don't be angry with him about that. It was what he thought was best for the team. And he's also much older than you guys. He probably forgets what it's like to be in high school and still feel relatively powerless."

"It still wasn't cool of him."

"No, it wasn't," Ashley agreed. "But is it worth carrying a grudge over? Is it worth potentially tearing the team apart over?"

Kira shook her head. "No, it's not."

"Will it matter ten years from now?"

"It seems like it will."

"It does sometimes."

Kira picked up the mug. She could see what Ashley was saying and their anger really was pointless in the long run. She smiled at the former Yellow Ranger. "Thanks."

Ashley returned the smile. "Any time. Us Yellow Rangers need to stick together."

She grinned and headed back for the lab.

* * *

"Dino Thunder, power up!"

Tommy shielded his eyes with his hand as blasts of green, pink and orange light lit up the room and faded as quickly as they had come. Well, the morphers worked if nothing else. He glanced at his watch. It was nearing midnight. And he was beginning to feel the late hour. All the other red rangers (and Ashley) had turned in for the night or gone back to the hotel. He had called Hayley, Conner, Ethan, Kira and Trent to the lab so they could run the tests on the new rangers and basically be around for something that affected them directly.

However, no one was alert. Conner was sleeping on the control panel. Ethan was supposed to be monitoring secondary systems with his laptop, but his head kept drooping and his eyes kept closing. Kira was sitting on the steps, rubbing her eyes and yawning. Trent was staring off into space at a point beyond the new rangers. Tommy couldn't really pick up on anyone's reactions to this because they were all asleep. He knew it was a bad idea to call them all here at ten o'clock on a school night.

He looked at the newly morphed Pink, Orange and Green Dino Thunder Rangers. Billy's outfit was like his, but green where his was black. Adam's resembled Conner and Ethan's suits only orange where theirs would have been red or blue. Kimberly was looking very similar to the ranger she had been back in the day—her outfit was like Kira's but pink rather than yellow.

They had tested the 'powers' earlier. Billy's original predictions over what powers the gems would have had been correct. However, it would be some time before the powers were honed into something usable in a battle. He shook his head to clear it. This was starting to become a bad episode of X-men. He remembered being forced to watch that show with Adam back in high school and he kept on thinking that the divisions between the X-men—the good guys!—were ridiculous. They all needed to learn to work together. However, that situation was quickly becoming a reality among the Dino Thunder Power Rangers. He hadn't imagined that things would become this complicated. And the bad thing was that there didn't seem to be any quibbling among Mesogog's ranks. Oh, to be an evil overlord that no one dares contradict…

Billy popped his helmet off. "You know, I just thought of something. There is no teleportation grid in this system."

"So?" Tommy asked, failing to see the point.

"Well, how do you guys get to a battle or a monster?"

"Walk," Conner yawned. "Or ride the Raptor-Riders or raptor-cycles."

"That is completely inefficient," Billy muttered. "I'll work on putting a teleportation grid into the system so that we can teleport directly to what's going on."

"That would require a coordinates system," Hayley replied.

"Don't you have one of those?" Billy asked. "I mean you can track the monsters and the raptor-cycles and zords, can't you?"

Hayley glared him.

"It would just take a bit of reprogramming, but it could be in place in as much as a few days."

Trust Billy to be the only one awake when everyone else was dead on their feet. Tommy would gladly have joined the slumbering people upstairs, but there were still a few more tests to run. He sighed. It was going to be a very long night.

The warning chimes beeped in the lab. Hayley swung into action, bringing up the various surveillance screens. A monster could be seen attacking downtown Reefside. The change in the room was instantaneous. Where previously everyone had been sleepy and lethargic, everyone was alert and energy was running through the room. But the monster wasn't all… Mesogog himself was watching the monster attack. Tommy wondered at this. Normally, Mesogog just let his minions do his dirty work. Maybe he got tired of them botching everything. He felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach… and then the leader in him kicked in.

"Conner, Ethan, Kira, Trent… stop the monster!"

The four teens nodded. "Dino Thunder power up! Ha!" They appeared morphed.

"We can take Conner and Ethan's raptor-cycles to the monster," Kira said quickly. "You guys can use mine and Trent's."

Trent started to protest, but Kira slapped his arm and he was silent. The four teens went over to the red and blue raptor-cycles with Kira riding behind Conner and Trent riding behind Ethan. It was the complicated way to do things, but Tommy supposed that it would work. They were completely forgetting that he had a raptor-cycle and a Raptor-Rider, but he supposed that it showed team work. Billy really needed to get started on that teleportation system.

Tommy turned to Kimberly, Adam and Billy. "You guys come with me to see what Mesogog wants this time."

They nodded. Once more, the room rang with the cry of "Dino Thunder power up!" And they all appeared fully morphed. Hayley sat down at the control panel and punched a few keys.

"Brachio is on his way with their zords," she told them.

He nodded and they climbed onto the yellow and white raptor-cycles to get to Mesogog. He should not have been surprised that Kimberly was riding behind him and Adam was behind Billy. It was just another signal that they had to have another talk very soon. He revved the yellow raptor-cycle's engine and they were off into the night. The cool night air whipped through their uniforms, creating a pleasant sensation. All too soon the ride was over and the four of them were standing in front of Mesogog. The half-human, half-reptile was standing with his back to them, hands loosely clasped at the small of his back.

"I wondered when you would arrive, Doctor Oliver." The reptile-man looked at a pocket watch. "I had expected you fifteen minutes sooner."

"Ew, gross," he heard Kimberly mutter. He grimaced inside his helmet. That had been her reaction to many a monster when they had been rangers in high school. He thought back to Cole's description of what she might be doing. It almost seemed apt.

"That's Mesogog?" Adam whispered, half as a question and half as an astounded statement.

Mesogog turned around slowly and appraised them. "So these are your new rangers?" He shook his head. "I would have expected better of you. At least the other brats are young. You let washed-up, former rangers become rangers once again. You must be becoming senile."

Tommy felt anger boil in his blood. Billy, Adam and Kimberly were just as capable of becoming rangers once more as he was, maybe even more so. "No, Mesogog," he said slowly and evenly. "They have experience."

"You are a fool. But I have an option for you. Give me the gem that you have not used for a ranger. I may spare your friends when I create my dream world."

"I don't have the other gem," he lied, knowing exactly what Mesogog was talking about. He wanted the purple gem and Tommy would be damned if he was going to give it to him.

"Oh, but you do. And you know who will hold it, even if that person is not a ranger."

Tommy's muscles tensed. This time he had no idea what Mesogog was talking about. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't you?" Mesogog slowly walked towards them. Immediately, all four of them were in a defensive stance. The reptile-man laughed. "You four think you are a match for me? You are all fools." He looked directly at Tommy. "Your friends share your lack of intelligence. They are on the losing side of this war."

"At least we've chosen a side!" Adam replied with anger in his voice. Tommy felt surprise run through his body, but masked it and kept his gaze on Mesogog. He had not expected any of them to speak up on their first encounter with the 'bad guy.'

"Ah!" Mesogog said in a mocking tone. "The patriot to the end. You will soon find that your efforts are worthless." He paused and turned back to Tommy. "I will give you one last chance to give me that gem. If you don't, I have other means of getting it and whoever holds it—ranger or no—that person will pay… with their life!" He gave again and it chilled Tommy to his very bones. "Once I have that gem, your resistance will be meaningless." Tommy hated to tell him that no one owned the gem yet, but that seemed a little fruitless.

Tommy knew that Mesogog was bluffing in order to get them to give something away. He did know where that gem was. They had already found it. And even if they hadn't, on a deeper level all the Dino-Gems were connected and heated in the presence of each other. He didn't fear that Mesogog would get the gem out of the vault—he feared what Mesogog would do to Reefside before they gave in and gave him the gem.

Mesogog cracked a demonic smile. "I know what you are thinking—you have the gem and I cannot get it. And you are right. I am counting on you leading me to the person who will own it and I will destroy them!" He laughed that evil laughter of his. "And I know you will. You are a fool!"

The reptile-man pulled a sword out of his belt. Tommy turned his head slightly to Billy, Kimberly and Adam. "Call out your weapons! They're in your belts!" The belt buckles on the three of them glowed briefly and the weapons appeared. Adam had a quiver strapped onto his back full of arrows and a bow in his hands. Kimberly had an ax, but it had a smaller, more streamlined head for a more graceful and feminine look. And Billy had… a pair of Dragon Daggers? One dagger looked like Dragon Dagger Tommy had used as the original green ranger. The other was exactly the same, but not a flute… Billy was staring at it. Tommy pulled out his Brachio-Staff. There was no time to contemplate it.

Mesogog charged at them with the sword. Tommy ducked the initial blow and managed to strike him between his shoulders. The reptile-man screeched in pain and succeeded in knocking Kimberly and Adam to the side. Adam pulled out an arrow and fitted it on the bow. The shot was low and got Mesogog in the leg. He screamed in rage and advanced on the only person in his line of sight—Kimberly.

She screamed and backed away. Billy had ducked off to the side during his first advance and Tommy met his gaze. The Black Ranger advanced on Mesogog with the Brachio-Staff, but found it was unnecessary. The Green Ranger was holding out his hand, having tucked one of the daggers in his belt. Mesogog's sword flew out of his hand and into Billy's. Tommy could have kicked himself for forgetting their powers—Billy was now telekinetic.

Mesogog roared in rage and then disappeared through an invisi-portal.

Billy had dropped the sword and pulled the dagger out of his belt, looking at the identical pair of daggers.

"The Dragon-Zord?" Tommy asked softly.

"I don't know," Billy replied.

"That is way too weird," Kimberly interjected.

"If it is, can we call him closer than Angel Grove?" Adam asked.

Tommy smiled inside his helmet. An explosion in the background indicated that the kids had defeated whatever the monster was. "We'll have to find out tomorrow." Whatever exhaustion he had felt before the encounter with Mesogog had come back, tenfold. It was past his bed time and he knew it. They climbed back onto the yellow and white raptor-cycles and soon enough were in his lab. Everyone said their goodnights and left, until Tommy was standing alone in the lab.

He suddenly felt some fatherly instinct to make sure that everyone in his house was all right and that no one had woken up to all the noise from the lab. He headed up the stairs and quietly looked into the living room. Cole was wrapped up entirely in his blankets on the air mattress, the only part of him visible was the top of his head. Eric was sprawled over his half of the sleeper sofa, his blankets awkwardly around his middle. TJ was the only one who looked comfortable, lying on his side with his blankets drawn to his chest.

He padded up the stairs and cracked the door to the guest room. Ashley was lying on her side with her back against Andros' chest, his arm over her stomach. Tommy felt a slight pang in his heart. How many times had he wished that he could have a situation similar to that? But he had no one.

Shutting the door, he went into his own room, amazed that none of them had woken up. He stripped and collapsed into bed, falling asleep almost the moment his head hit the pillow.

* * *

Mesogog's wrath was immense. The monster had failed to suppress the rangers like Mesogog had hoped. In fact, he had expected all of the rangers—however many there were now—to battle the monster. Instead, half of them went to him and the other half went to the monster and they still defeated that monster with only half the rangers. Elsa shuddered. Obviously, this strategy was not working and they needed to come up with something else.

Their monsters were ineffective. They had to do something that would directly prevent the rangers from fighting. But what? Kidnap family members? Attack them in the middle of the night and steal their morphers? Sabotage the zords? She didn't know. All of those attempts seemed like they would prove fruitless in the long-run. They needed something that would prevent the rangers from defending themselves now. And it had to be something that the former rangers wouldn't foresee and be able to help with.

"How do you hunt a bear?"

Elsa swung around to see Mesogog standing in the doorway of the room. She stared at him, not understanding the implications of his question. He shook his head.

"Such a feeble mind. Tell me, how do you hunt a bear?"

She shook her head. "Go after it with a gun?" she suggested. What did a bear hunt have to do with destroying the Power Rangers? She thought they were attacking humans and not large game.

Mesogog nodded slowly. "In the summer. How would you hunt it in the winter?"

She stared at him. He growled.

"Bears hibernate in the winter."

Elsa felt more and more confused. If a bear slept all winter… "Go into its cave and attack it there?"

Mesogog hissed in approval. "Quite right." He stepped into the room and walked over to the controls near the Geno-Randomizer.

"Forgive me, my Lord, but what does that have to do with Doctor Oliver and his power pukes?"

The reptile-man turned to face her. "What indeed? Tell me Elsa, what do you think a bear hunt has to do with them?"

She was silent. Going into Doctor Oliver's lab could be potentially dangerous. There was no telling what kind of security would be there or who they would run into for that matter. However, if they succeeded in getting into the lab and neutralizing all the security, they could easily get the purple gem or sabotage the zords or something…

"So what do they use to defeat our monster ultimately?" Mesogog asked.

"The biozords."

"So, if we hit them where it would hurt the most, that would be…?"

"The biozords?" She paused. "But we can't just go into the lab and put a virus on the zords. Who knows what will be down there? It could hurt our plan even more!"

"Beautifully spoken, Elsa," Mesogog said.

"But my Lord, the lab…"

Mesogog turned to her. "Then we had better wait for the opportune time!" 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Wow! I was absolutely staggered by the number of reviews for the last chapter! Thank you so much for all your kind words and support! It means a lot to me. Also, because so many of you answered my questions, I'll thank everyone collectively! (There's only so much I can glean from episode summaries and whatnot.) THANK YOU! Now onto my favorite part of the show- reviewer responses:

**Charles RocketBoy**- I'm kind of tired of the predictable pairing of Kim with Tommy myself. Thought it was time for a change on that front. And I see your point about the cheap coincidence. My thought was that the gems feel their owners draw near and, in a sense, call them to them. Does that make any sense? But what you're saying does make sense. Thanks for your kind words. I'm glad someone notices the little details!

**cmar**- Red rangers getting drunk together... I'm with Wes, that is a frightening prospect. They all may get drunk later on-- I haven't decided yet. Wes' issues with Jen come in later, but that was my main reasoning for his reaction. He also is pretty close to Tommy and understands the situation a bit better than even Kim or Tommy may. But thanks for your kind words and for informing me of Rovang's Writer's Database. That thing is amazing. Everything I ever wanted to know and more. Thank you so much!

**Felicia Angel**- Yes, Billy is back as a ranger. (He's one of my favorite characters!) I'm definitely going to continue so no worries there!

**Funky In Fishnet**- Kim's intro was one of those things I thought of at, well, Starbucks (the bane of my existence. We can all see where Wes gets it from.) I'm glad you liked it. Chance meetings at coffee houses are always fun. I'm glad you like the story!

**jim hawking jr**- Thanks for answering my question! It's so hard to keep up with who's teamed up with who... shakes head But thanks for your review!

**kakwat**- Thanks for your insight! I'm not entirely sure what it means either... one of those little things that eludes you! lol Thanks for you review!

**KimberFlames**- I'm glad you're intrigued with the twist in Kim's personality. I'm trying to spice up the Tommy-Kim aspect of things with stuff that isn't predictable. Clones aren't going to come into this, but it is an interesting thought. Thanks for reading and reviewing!

**PhantomZeo**- Although it would be nice to see one of the former red rangers get the purple gem, I'm not entirely sure any of them would be thrilled with the idea of a purple uniform. (It might impugn on their masculinity.) lol But thank you for your kind words! I actually am kind of glad that there was no WF/NS team up-- would make it hard to avoid more characters I am not familiar with. But once more, thank you for reviewing!

**Pinkie**- I'm glad you appreciate the twist in Kim's character. I am trying to be different on that front. (I'm not entirely sure if I'm succeeding, but I'm trying. lol) Thanks for your review and kind words!

**rembrandt**- I'm glad you like the story. It is kind of fun to see all the 'old favorites' so to speak, come back! :)

**sayinjinj7**- Thanks for your kind words! I'm trying to write as quickly as I can!

**Sean**- The story hasn't ended! Why would you think that? I'm definitely writing more, so stay tuned.

**SilverRider**- Give Jason a gem? The bum who sits on the beach and crushes beer cans on his forehead? Surely you jest! lol Jason isn't going to get a gem, mostly because he still can use his powers (unlike Adam, Billy and Kimberly who aren't aware that they can still tap into their Mighty Morphin' powers.) It's not that I don't like Jason. :) But thanks for you kind words!

**the-power-of-love**- Thanks for your kind words! I'm glad you like the story!

**white time ranger**- shakes head How many times have I said that patience is a virtue? lol Thanks for your kind words. And I'm really glad that the suspense is actually working. lol Keep on reviewing!


	10. We'll Make It, I Swear

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Ten: We'll Make It, I Swear**

Leo awoke in the middle of that same night to a raging storm. He glanced over at the digital clock in the room. The numbers read 4:03. What was he doing awake at four o'clock in the morning? Outside, there was a flash of lightening and a crash of thunder. He started and glanced towards the window in the hotel room. The wind howled outside. No, it wasn't howling. It was roaring once more. He glanced over to the other bed in the room. Carter was still dead asleep. He looked back to the window. After a moment's indecision, he threw off his covers and opened the door to their hotel room.

Maya had always told him to listen to nature, to listen with his heart. The world was always willing to reveal secrets, she had told him, as long as we are willing to listen. He looked out at the raging storm.

"Leo? What are you doing?"

He turned to see Carter sitting up in bed and looking at him. He had temporarily forgotten that Carter woke up so easily. He shook his head at the firefighter. "It's not important. Just go back to sleep, Carter."

Carter stared at him. Leo felt temporarily guilty for snapping at Carter. However, the Lightspeed Ranger knew him too well for that. Carter ignored the barb. "You can't tell me that you want to go outside in that!" He gestured to the rain pouring off the roof of the porch.

"Just trust me," he replied. "There's something out there. I want to find out what it is."

"What's out there?" Carter asked, confused. "What's going on?"

Ever the rationalist to the end. Leo shook his head. "I can't describe it. There is something on the wind out there."

That stopped Carter dead. Andros had said something earlier about having a bad feeling about what was going to happen. Cole had agreed with it later on. Leo knew what they were talking about and Carter would too, if he would let go of rationality for just one moment. He knew that they all had felt it in one way or another. Carter had probably just chalked it up as anxiety over something.

"You know what I'm talking about," Leo said. "I know you do. Just let go of logic and reason for one moment and listen to the wind, listen with your heart."

He turned and left Carter gaping at him. He stepped out onto the porch, feeling the cold wind of the rain whip around him. He wasn't dressed to be in the rain—barefoot and wearing only a pair of pajama pants, but he swung himself down the steps and out into the middle of the parking lot. The wind roared and the rain was coming so fast and hard that it stung his skin. He could barely see. Lightening streaked the sky and briefly lit up the dark parking lot. The following thunder boom was enough to rattle his very bones.

"What do you want to tell me?" he cried into the wind and rain. "I'm listening! What's going on?" He flung his arms out and looked up at the stormy sky.

The wind roared around him. He heard the familiar roaring again—the rage, the indignation, even the pain. But it wasn't directed at him. It was directed at something far more removed than him, something that wouldn't be listening to this. He closed his eyes and concentrated hard on that howling wind. Lightening flashed again and behind his eyelids he could make out the outline of an island, but where was the island?

The rage and pain were about that island.

"What about the island?" he yelled. "What's going on?"

But the wind had died back down to a normal howl. He sank to his knees on the asphalt parking lot. He was soaked through the little clothing he had on and his limbs felt numb with the cold. The water streaked down his face and chest. There was an island… but what about the island? What about an island could make the wind roar like that? For the first time since coming back to Earth, he really wished that Mike and Maya were here. Maya would be able to tell him what the wind was saying, what it all meant.

He slowly stood up and turned back to the stairs. He wasn't surprised to see Carter standing on the porch. From the look on his face, Carter had heard it too.

* * *

Cole was happily transferring toast to a plate while stirring scrambled eggs when Andros walked into the kitchen that morning. Coffee was brewing in the percolator and a bowl of sliced fruit was already on the table. Andros smiled to himself. He needed to get Cole an apron that read 'kiss the cook' for Christmas.

"Morning!" Cole said cheerily.

"Morning," Andros replied while grabbing a mug and pouring himself some coffee.

"Do you know when Wes said they were getting here?"

Andros shook his head, blowing gently on the coffee to cool it. "He didn't say," he replied knowing that Cole was referring to everyone staying at the hotel. "Although Carter called me this morning and said Leo was staying at the hotel."

"Why?"

"Apparently he had an escapade in the rain last night and now has a cold."

Cole looked up from the scrambled eggs, his blue-gray eyes wide. He knew what that probably meant. "I know he's felt it too, but why go out in the rain?"

Andros shook his head again. "I don't know. All I got was Carter's explanation which was devoid of any supernatural details."

The Wild Force ranger rolled his eyes. "We should probably go over there and talk to him the first chance we get." He paused. "We could go right after breakfast. It's not like we have anything pressing to do this morning."

"And bring him orange juice and NyQuil," Andros muttered. He glanced out to the empty living room—the sleeper sofa was back in place and the air mattress was against the wall with all the blankets folded. "So where are Eric and TJ?"

"Eric's in the shower and TJ's out working on Tommy's car."

"It died again?"

"Yeah, TJ said something about a new battery." Cole shrugged. "I don't know. I don't own a car."

Andros took another sip of his coffee just as the front door banged open. He glanced towards the archway connecting the living room and kitchen, expecting to see TJ barging in from fixing the car. However, the person he saw was not TJ. It was the Dino Thunder Red Ranger, Conner. He grinned when he saw them.

"Doctor O said something about us being invited to breakfast this morning," he said and then glanced at the clock on the wall of the kitchen. "I don't have much time though. Gotta be at school."

Andros exchanged a glance with Cole. "Why the sudden change of heart?" Cole asked.

Conner shrugged. "Me and Ethan and Kira and Trent talked about it last night and decided that it wasn't worth being angry about." He paused. "Besides, when Doctor O was doing the powers tests with Billy and Adam and Kim, I was watching the archives, before I fell asleep, and there were lots of times that help came when no one or only one person called for it."

Cole laughed while Andros just smiled. "Welcome to the club," Andros said dryly.

Conner grinned. "Dude, can I be a part of the red ranger distress signal thingy?"

"I think that requires a group vote," Andros replied.

"Well, vote when I'm in school and tell me when I get here after school." He stopped momentarily and stared at them. "You guys are Andros and Cole, right?" When they nodded, his grin widened. "I knew I had everyone's name down after reading the archives!" He paused. "So why aren't any of the Ninja Storm rangers part of your distress signal?"

"They weren't on the mission where we established it," Andros explained as Conner got himself a cup of coffee. "None of us really know them that well."

"They weren't even rangers yet when we were on that mission," Cole added. "Everyone on the mission was really tight, which is part of the reason we established it." He gestured to the toast and scrambled eggs. "You guys get some food before Jason gets here."

Conner looked startled. Andros laughed.

"There are certain members of the red ranger distress signal group who eat anything that doesn't eat them first. Among them are Jason," he explained.

Conner shook his head. "And everyone says I'm bad. I mean, come on! Doctor O ate my Bagel Bites!"

Andros started laughing. "Maybe you shouldn't store food in his fridge. He might think you put it there for him."

Conner gave him a look that clearly said, 'that's not the point, it's the principle of the thing,' although Andros was not entirely sure he could articulate that.

"Andros…"

The three of them turned to see Ashley standing in the doorway of the kitchen. He hurried over to her, leaving his plate and coffee mug on the counter. "What's wrong, Ash?" he asked taking in the panic in her brown eyes.

"My water just broke," she said softly.

There was a crash in the background. Andros turned towards Cole and Conner and decided that it was a collective crash between the two of them. He rolled his eyes at them.

"Any of you want to come along?" he asked, not expecting an answer.

To his eternal surprise, Cole volunteered, quickly turning off all the burners and the coffee pot and grabbing his flip-flops from the living room.

"I'll go tell Doctor O so he can spread the word," Conner volunteered and raced up the stairs two at a time.

Andros exchanged a glance with Ashley. "Are you ready for this?" he asked softly.

She grimaced. "Too late to do anything now," she replied sarcastically and her face contorted into another expression of pain. Andros wrapped an arm around her waist and waited for the contraction to pass. When it did, he ushered her out the door and to their car. On the way to the hospital, Cole ended up timing contractions while he was driving as fast as he dared. As the hospital came into view, he felt the familiar anticipation and anxiety. He could only hope that this birth would go as well as Brian's did.

* * *

Carter sat in the waiting room of the hospital, trying to read an old issue of _Reader's Digest_ while there was a constant stream of people in and out of Ashley's room. The morning had started out interestingly enough. Leo woke up sneezing and running a temperature. In spite of it, he was ready to go before the rest of them. Carter, with some help from Wes, had made him stay at the hotel, promising to tell him anything that went on. The minute he, Wes and Jason left the hotel, they got a call from Tommy saying that Ashley and Andros had gone to the hospital because Ashley was going to have the baby. They had come straight to the hospital and that is where they remained.

His stomach growled, reminding him that it was after one in the afternoon and he had yet to eat anything today. Oh well, he figured that some things took precedence over eating. Eric came out of Ashley's room and parked himself in the chair next to Carter.

"They are naming that poor girl Karone," he said with disgust in his voice.

Carter looked up from the magazine mildly. "What's wrong with it? Isn't that Andros' sister's name?"

"It sounds like a brand of beer!"

He laughed. When Eric was right, he was right. "I hope you didn't tell that to Andros and Ashley. Andros might be offended."

Eric rolled his eyes. "I didn't tell them. I told Wes. He agrees with me. Maybe Karone is a common name on KO 35, but around here it sounds too much like 'Corona'." He paused. "Speaking of Coronas, I could go for one right now."

"All this birth stuff makes you feel old?"

Eric blinked at him. "Not in the way you mean. It doesn't bother you because you have two kids already and probably watched both of them being born." Carter shrugged. "And you have insane in-laws."

"They could be worse."

It was the Quantum Ranger's turn to shrug. "Look, if I ever get married, I wouldn't want my wife to go through that unless she really wanted to. Half the time, I don't think women really want to."

Carter looked back to the magazine. "I am the wrong person to talk to about this. You might want to enlist Ashley or Dana in this research."

Eric glared at him, while Cole bolted out of the room and skidded to a halt in front of them. He was carrying a legal pad and pen. "I can't believe they're naming that little girl Karone," Cole was muttering. "It sounds like a beer brand."

Carter laughed as Eric elbowed him. "See, it's not confined to me," he said. "Even Captain Planet here thinks that's what it sounds like."

"Did I ever disagree with you?" Carter asked mildly, still pretending to read the _Reader's Digest_.

"No," Eric replied.

Cole waved the legal pad in front of their faces. "I need everyone's opinion on something and I figured I'd do it while almost all of us are in the same place."

"For what?" Carter asked.

"We are deciding whether or not to let Conner be a part of the red ranger distress signal." He paused. "So I need a 'yes' or 'no' from you guys."

"Did I miss something?" Eric asked. "I thought that those kids hated our guts because we came here without them knowing."

Cole shrugged. "I think they talked about it and decided that it wasn't worth remaining angry over. I like Conner, he's a decent enough kid."

"You would," Eric muttered.

Carter rolled his eyes at Eric's sarcasm. "It's okay with me," he told Cole as he scribbled something on the legal pad.

"I guess its okay," Eric said grudgingly. "But we should make him go through an initiation right or something." He leaned back in his chair with an evil smile. "Hazing…"

Carter rolled his eyes again. Why was it that he always seemed to get stuck with the world's most sarcastic people? Cole scribbled something else on the legal pad and dashed down in the direction of the cafeteria where several of the former red rangers were hiding. It was a good thing too, because the moment Cole disappeared, Conner appeared.

"Hey, dudes," Conner said. "I came to see the baby."

Eric opened his mouth to say something but Carter beat him to it. "They're in that room," he said indicating the room across the hall. "Are the others coming?" he asked, referring to the rest of the Dino Thunder rangers and Hayley.

"I think so," Conner replied. "I told Dr. Cranston during science and he said he'd come right after school. That's when I told Ethan and Kira. I'm pretty sure that Kira told Trent and Hayley. I think Kira said they were meeting at Hayley's before coming over here." He paused. "And Doctor O said he would call Kim and Coach."

Carter found it slight amusing that Conner referred to all the male rangers who were his seniors by some kind of title, while he didn't seem to find it necessary with the female. He wondered if that was conscious or not. Maybe the diminutive meant something.

"Was the baby a boy or a girl?" Conner asked.

"Girl," Eric said.

"What did they name it?"

"Karone," Carter replied.

Conner shrugged. "Sounds like a brand of beer."

Eric started laughing. Conner sidled off into Ashley's room. Carter shook his head at Eric. "Are you telepathic or something and put that thought into everyone's head?"

"No telepathy, I swear. It just does sound like beer." He stood up. "Well, I have to go round up the kid. We're taking a trip to see Leo and the kid wants to bring him some medicine and juice." He smiled wryly. "Isn't it great that Cole and I are so alike?"

"Rocky and Bullwinkle," Carter muttered.

Eric looked at him with some interest. "Who's Rocky and who's Bullwinkle?"

"I'd better not say. It'd either offend you or give you ideas."

"You are fucking unbelievable," Eric replied with a smile. "I'm going on my field trip with the kid. See you later!" As he walked off towards the cafeteria, he could hear Eric yelling, 'COLE! We have to go NOW if you want to see Leo!'

Carter shook his head and went back to reading the dumb magazine. How he ever got associated with this bunch of lunatics was beyond him.

* * *

Lord Mesogog had been correct. All they had to do was wait for the opportune time to plant the virus on the zords. And the time could not have been more perfect. One of the former power pukes had her baby and all the other power pukes had to go to the hospital to see her and be there for her. That left no one at the lab or in Doctor Oliver's house for that matter. Perfect… she could scarcely believe that the trusting fools had not even left one person behind to guard the lab, the zords and that gem…

Getting into the lab had been one of the easiest codes she ever had to break—pulling down on the skeletal jaw of the tyrannosaurus gave her entrance to the lab. The computers were still on with the surveillance going, but no one was around or watching them. Oliver had not even put a password on the system. Fools… She went to the zord bay and saw that all the zords were in there asleep. Good, this would be much easier if the zords were asleep.

She went over to the computer and sat down in one of the chairs. Fingers flying over the keyboard, she brought up the zords on the computer. She pushed a CD into the drive and waited as the computer brought up the contents. Downloading the contents onto the zords, she let a satisfied smile drift over her face. This had been all too easy.

She took the CD out of the drive and put the computers back to the screens she had found them on. They would not detect what she had just done until it was too late. She stood up and teleported out of the lab.

* * *

Cole jumped out of the car with the bag containing the orange juice and NyQuil almost before Eric turned the car off. He was at as much of a loss as the others to explain his friendship with Eric, since they were polar opposites. Eric could have cared less that Leo was sick, mostly because the circumstances pointed to one fact—Leo got himself sick by running around in the rain last night. Cole felt sorry for him and wanted to see him get better, since he knew that each one of them hated being left out of any action.

He bolted up the steps two at a time and knocked on the room number that Wes had told him was the room Leo and Carter shared. There was some shuffling and then Leo cracked the door open. He looked terrible—pale with dark circles under his eyes. He smiled when he saw Cole at the door.

"Hey," he said weakly.

"Get back in bed," Cole ordered as he entered the room and Eric caught up to him. Leo went back in the room and flopped down onto his bed.

"What the hell were you doing out in the rain?" Eric asked coldly as he shut the door and leaned up against the wall. Cole gave him a withering look as he poured out a dose of NyQuil for Leo and handed it to him.

Leo smiled gratefully at Cole as he handed him the NyQuil and downed it. "There was roaring on the wind," he told Eric simply.

"What?" Eric said.

Cole nodded. "What did it say?"

"Do you guys mean to tell me that you were listening to the wind? How can the fucking wind tell you anything at all?"

Cole ignored Eric's outburst. "What did it say?" he asked again, taking in Leo's slightly disgusted look at Eric.

Leo looked from Eric back to him, shaking his head. "I couldn't tell. All I could see was an island, but it stopped before I could find out what the island was about."

"An island? That could mean anything," Cole replied softly.

Leo nodded. "I know. I know." 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** And now we get to the title of the fic! (Took me long enough!) At any rate, thank you so much for the kind reviews! I went to read them and was astounded at the sheer quantity (not the mention the quality.) You guys are amazing! No reviewer responses this time-- homework and the cable internet on campus has gone out meaning I have to resort to my dial-up. Huzzah. But to the person who told me they think they know who's going to get the purple gem (Phantom Zeo perhaps?), all I have to say is 'really?' (with a raised eyebrow.) But once more, thanks for all the feedback and keep it coming!


	11. the Heart Grows Older

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Eleven: the Heart Grows Older**

Leo was tired of being the invalid of the group. He had taken the NyQuil Cole gave him and slept all afternoon. Upon waking up around dinner time, he felt better than he had all day and had called Wes, managing to convince him to pick him up. The group at Tommy's house was much smaller than it normally would have been—most people were still at the hospital with Andros and Ashley and baby Karone. Notably present were Kimberly and Billy. He was not sure why Kimberly was there, but Billy had been working on the teleportation system. After hearing that and not wanting a technical speech about it, Leo slipped out on the back porch into the cool evening air.

He pulled his flannel shirt tighter around him as he shivered. Taking his cell phone out of his pocket, he dialed his home number. There were some things he and Kendrix needed to talk about. The phone rang twice. On the third ring, a familiar voice came over the line.

"Hey, Leo!" Kendrix said. For some reason, Leo felt like her cheerful tone sounded forced. Did she really not want to hear from him?

"Hi Kendrix," he replied, his voice still sounding scratchy from the cold.

"Are you all right? You sound kind of sick."

"I woke up with a cold this morning, but its better."

"Oh." She paused. "So how are things out there?"

"Fine. It's kind of fun to be helping out again." Kendrix didn't reply. Leo didn't know what to make of it. She had been acting kind of strange before he left, but it just seemed to be magnified more and more as he stayed helping the Dino Thunder rangers. "Kendrix," he said seriously, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing! I'm fine."

Every cell in his body told him that she was lying. Was this going to go back to their continuing argument about him 'smothering' her and how she needed space? "Kendrix, something has to be wrong. You're never this…" He searched for a word. "… quiet," he finished lamely.

"Leo…"

"Do you want me to come home?" he asked before she could say anything. He knew that being a ranger always came first, but everyone else seemed to have things well in hand. He could leave for a few days and come back if his help was still needed.

"No, Leo, you don't need to come home," she replied. Her tone of voice sounded tired and almost defeated.

"Then what is going on?"

"Nothing! Why are you convinced something is wrong?"

"Because you sound like you're hiding something from me!"

"And this is from the man whose car keys perpetually end up in the freezer!" Her voice was rising in volume and pitch. "You aren't perceptive enough to find your own clothes and you tell me that I sound like I'm hiding something!"

"Kendrix…"

"Do not start this with me, Leo. I don't have to tell you everything!"

"I'm worried about you!"

"Worried? Where was all your infamous worry before you though I had died? You didn't care about things like that before, why now? You haven't let up on badgering me into telling you everything since we got married and I'm sick of it. You are not in charge of me, Leo Corbett!"

"I never said I was!"

There was a definitive click on the other end of the line. She had hung up on him. They had been married five years and never once had she gotten so angry that she hung up on him. Leo dialed the number again and waited. The phone rang four times and then the answering machine came on. Okay, now was the part where he talked like an idiot into the answering machine.

"Kendrix!" he said. "I know you're still there! Pick up the phone!" He waited a moment. She didn't pick up the phone. "Look," he said in a softer tone of voice. "I'm sorry. I'm worried about you and want to make sure you're okay. You don't have to tell me everything, but I wish you'd tell me why you're angry with me. Just give me a call back when you're ready. I love you." He disconnected the call, hoping that Kendrix had heard him.

He put his cell phone back in his pocket and leaned his head against the railing down the steps. For the first time since he thought Mike died, he wanted to cry. No, it was not worth crying about and he was all out of sync because he had been sick. But it happened anyways. Hot tears slipped down his cheeks as he furiously wiped at them. He hoped to God that everyone would stay in the house and leave him alone for once.

* * *

Tommy walked slowly up the stairs from the lab. Billy had just given him a technical explanation of what he had been doing concerning the new teleportation system. Now, his head was spinning and he was sorry he asked Billy what he had been doing in the first place. He walked into the kitchen and gave a brief smile to Kimberly, who was sitting at the table with a cup of tea. All day he had been wondering why she was here not either at the hospital, work or home. The only other people here were Leo (out on the back porch on his cell phone) and Billy (down in the lab immersed in his world of science).

He sat down at the table with her. "Hey," he said softly.

She looked up from where she had been staring into the depths of her mug. Her brown eyes looked so haunted and… lost. She was as beautiful as he remembered, except no longer in that pretty high school way. She had grown up into a gorgeous woman that any man would be proud to date or marry. He wondered what had happened to her since their parting all those years ago… why the lost look? "Hey, Tommy," she replied, a ghost of a smile over her lips.

"What're you thinking about?"

"Just being a ranger again. I never thought that it would happen. I thought that that era of my life was over and my time as a serious gymnast had to begin."

"Seems natural enough."

She nodded. "It does, until I realized that I didn't want to hear about ranger adventures from Adam or Rocky or Kat. I wanted to be there. I wanted to help. At the time I had thought that this opportunity would be the best thing instead of being a ranger. It wasn't until I gave my powers to Kat that I realized being a ranger is the most important thing I could ever have done with my life."

Tommy smiled. "Conner said almost that same thing when he first became a ranger."

"I think we all missed it once we moved on."

"Have you really moved on?" he asked softly.

She looked up quickly, her eyes wide and round. She shook her head. "No. I missed all my friends and Angel Grove and being a ranger so much… I thought it would help to cut all connections with it and concentrate on being a gymnast."

"You did get the gold at the Pan Globals."

Kimberly snorted. "And lost contact with all my friends while doing it."

He took a deep breath, asking the question he had wanted to for years. "When you wrote me that letter… was there really someone else?"

"Of course there was. There were always boys from the men's team around who wanted to date the cute petite girls on the women's team. I didn't feel for him what I told you I did."

"So what happens now?" he asked.

Her eyes looked so hopeful, it nearly broke his heart. "I don't know. I mean we're both rangers again and we're both in Reefside…"

He held up a hand. "Don't say it. We've lived separate lives since high school. You've been in a world of gymnastics and I've been in a world of education and science. We can't just pick up where we left off like nothing happened, like no time has passed."

"I didn't want to break up with you," she whispered.

He nodded. "I know that. I think I knew it then, but thought I had to let you go. But we're different people now. We can't cling to a memory. We can't live a memory."

"Can we ever repair this?"

"Maybe, someday, but not to what it was. I think we can be friends once more." He looked towards the living room as the front door banged open and he could hear Eric saying something along the lines of 'he brought beer named after the baby.' "Look, Kim," he said quietly. "You're a gorgeous woman and any man would kill to have you in his life. But that man can't be me. Too much has happened."

"So it will remain a memory?"

"Yes," he said with a smile. "It will remain a memory."

Eric and Cole came into the kitchen carrying a six-pack of Coronas. "I've got drinks!" Eric proclaimed, even though that fact was obvious. Kim stood up and left the kitchen. Eric stared after her. "What's with her?" he asked Tommy.

Tommy shrugged. "Reality."

"Reality sucks," Eric said definitively. "That's why I sit at home on Friday night and watch CSI Miami and eat popcorn."

Cole rolled his eyes, easily saying that that was not what Eric normally did on a Friday night, but he wasn't going to say anything. Tommy laughed. Even if he never found the woman he was meant to be with, he knew he would always have good friends.

* * *

Kimberly Hart slipped out of the kitchen and down the steps to the lab. She didn't really want to be around Eric Myers more than she had to—he had an abrasive personality that grated on her nerves and made her want to scream. She didn't see how any of the former red rangers, especially Cole, put up with Eric for such long periods of time. From one way of thinking, he was part of the group. From another way of thinking, he was completely rude, crude and socially unacceptable.

The lab was quiet as she entered. A soft breathing sound came from the direction of the zord bay, indicating that all the zords were asleep. It was peaceful down here, something she wasn't going to get in the kitchen with Eric and Cole and their beer. It was funny, but she never would have pictured Cole as much of a drinker. But the peace was what she needed. Her thoughts were too erratic to settle in that atmosphere.

A dull 'clunk' came from the computer panel. Her heart leaped as she automatically launched into a defensive position. Billy emerged from under the computer desk, wiping his hands on a dirty rag. His face was smeared with grease and sweat. She dropped the stance. How could she have forgotten that Billy was down here working on the teleportation system?

"I'm-I'm sorry," she stammered. "I forgot you were down here."

Billy smiled as he stood up. "It's all right. I could use the company. The last two people down here got scared off by my technical explanations." He looked at his watch. "Besides, I promised the girls I would be home by ten."

She reluctantly returned the smile. It was so strange to think of Billy as a father and a widower. The Ph.D. part of him came more naturally. Her smile faded. She had not found out about Trini's death until well after the fact. Billy had kept it quiet, since he did have a baby to take care of. Trini had been her closest friend since sixth grade… well, they had grown apart once Trini went to the peace conference and she went off to Florida. It was also hard to think of Billy and Trini as having their first child at age sixteen, however accidentally. There was so much surrounding Dr. Cranston that she was sure she would never find out, since he didn't willing divulge details of his past to anyone. And she had supposedly known him since the sixth grade?

He sat down on the steps up to the control panel, motioning for her to sit next to him. She slowly sat down next to him, making sure to keep a respectable distance. She glanced up at his profile. In all the years she had known Billy, she would not have pictured him with long hair, but the look suited him. It seemed to gently accentuate his strong jaw line and draw attention to his muscular shoulders and back. Not a martial artist's shoulders, but a gymnast's… He glanced down at her, a smile playing over his lips.

"Are you ogling me?"

She rolled her eyes, a slight pink blush coming into her cheeks. "No. I was just looking for a quiet place to think."

Billy's gaze was knowing. "Tommy finally tell you what he ultimately feels?"

"Yeah… I don't know what I thought. I guess I thought that he still cared for me on some level, that we could pick up where we left off." She sighed. "He's changed. He used to be such an…" She searched for a word.

"Airhead?" Billy supplied. She nodded, amazed at how accurate the word used to describe her tended towards Tommy in his high school years. "It took him a long time to grow out of that, believe me. And he still does care for you, just not as a boyfriend would care for a girlfriend. It's more like he cares for you as a dear friend."

Kimberly nodded and then gave Billy a sharp look. "Since when are you so perceptive?"

Billy smiled and then laughed. "Kimberly, my dear, the last time I spoke to you, we were still in high school. Being married to Trini and being the father of two children tends to make you listen to others and pick up on nuances in their tone."

"I can't believe I missed you and Trini being married." She glanced down at his left hand and saw the plain silver band there. As if he subconsciously caught her gaze, he picked up his hand and started twisting the ring around. "You still wear your wedding ring," she said softly. "How long has it been?"

"Eight years," he replied in a whisper. "We had the rings that would ultimately become our wedding bands a long time before we married."

"You miss her." It was not a question, but a statement.

"There isn't a day that goes by that I don't miss her." He smiled. "Mary Anne and Susie are so much like her." He paused and gave her a sidelong glance. "I guess there's more than one of us that needs to move on."

Kimberly smiled. "So how did you two come up with the names 'Mary Anne' and 'Susie'?"

To her surprise, Billy scowled. "I had nothing to do with either one of their names. I wasn't around when Mary Anne was born and Trini picked out Susie's name long before she born because, and I quote, 'I have no taste in names'." He paused. "Now they sound like they're from Alabama or Mississippi or something."

She laughed and looked at the tools lying around. "Did you need some help with this before you need to get home?"

"I actually need help getting today's pop quizzes graded," he said dryly. "I've had complaints from students that I'm not getting their work back to them in a timely fashion."

"Want some help?"

He gave her an appraising look. "Sure." He stood up, finishing wiping most of the grease from his hands and picked up his briefcase. He pulled out a sheaf of papers and two colored pens. He laid the answer key between them on the steps. "The answers are either completely right or completely wrong," he explained. "Ten question quiz, so ten points per question."

Kimberly nodded and picked up a purple pen and first period's quizzes. Silence descended over them as they graded the quizzes. The only sound was the slight shuffling of paper and the scratch of the pens. For once in her life, she didn't feel the need to fill the silence with idle chatter. It was comfortable. She could get used to moments like this, just sitting with a close friend and not saying anything. A smile floated over her lips as she came to Conner's quiz, which he failed abominably. She stifled a laugh.

Billy glanced at her, one eyebrow raised. "Something funny?"

"Conner seems like he really is an airhead from his quiz grade."

"He's not really. He could do a lot better if he applied himself."

She came to Ethan's quiz (which he aced) and Kira's (which had a passing grade). It was kind of relaxing, the repetitive nature of grading. She wouldn't want to do it all the time, but it seemed like good stress relief once in a while. Putting the last quiz from first period on the finished pile, she looked up at Billy. His blue-gray eyes were drooping shut. He had been working so hard lately…

"Stop ogling me," he said with a smile. He put the quizzes he had been working on down and turned so that he was fully facing her. She looked at his eyes, blue-gray, like the sea after a storm. Why had she never noticed that he had fabulous eyes before this? Why had she never noticed anything about Billy until now? But she knew why—he was the nerd and she was the popular girl and they didn't exchange meaningful conversations, ever.

"I'm not ogling you," she replied, trying to sound indignant. "I am admiring you."

"There's a difference?"

"Yes."

Billy looked amused. "Care to explain?"

Kimberly felt the flush in her cheeks come back. "It's complicated."

He smiled. "Isn't everything?" His hand came up to gently trace her jaw line and then follow up her cheek. "You've always been so pretty," he said softly.

A grin floated over her face. "I think you had to grow into your looks."

"Among other things," he replied dryly.

She stared at him for a moment. He really had grown into an attractive man. It made her wonder if anyone had been in his life since Trini. Any woman would have gobbled him up in a moment. However, she got the feeling that he didn't want anyone in his life. Suddenly, she was all too aware of the fact that his fingers were still stroking her jaw. He leaned closer to her and, before she could think, his warm, soft lips were on hers. Oh God, there was electricity running through that kiss and a million other things that she couldn't describe. How many times had she closed her eyes so tightly when Tommy kissed her… when all the while Billy was never far away? How could she not have realized this? It was amazing.

All too soon, Billy roughly broke the kiss. "I'm sorry," he said, his voice hoarse. "I shouldn't have done that."

"No, it's okay," she quickly reassured him.

"No, it's not okay." He features looked tortured. "You don't want this kind of relationship with me. I have two daughters, one of which is a teenager and-"

She silenced him with a finger on his lips. "I haven't met your daughters, but if they're anything like you or Trini then they're great girls." She stopped. She should have been afraid of a relationship with a man who had children, but, somehow, she wasn't. "I don't know… maybe you could do that again, some time."

Billy's smile could have lit up the darkest place on Earth. He gently pulled her into his lap, locking his arms around her waist. The quizzes forgotten on the floor, she threaded her arms around his neck and let their heated kisses come. She had so many previous boyfriends, but none of them had this kind of fire, this kind of magic in their kisses. She didn't know how long it had been when she heard a distant cell phone ring.

"Shit," Billy muttered and picked up his cell phone from the briefcase. "It's Mary Anne. I need to get home." He paused and looked at her. "You want to come with me?"

She smiled. "That would be great."

* * *

Elsa smiled at the readings on the scanner. The Power Rangers' zords would be unusable, but they wouldn't realize that until they went to use the zords. An evil laugh bubbled up from the back of her throat and broke loose. This was too good to be true. With the rangers unable to stop a ten-story monster, it was only a matter of time before Mesogog's plan would be fulfilled once and for all. The first to be destroyed would be the Power Rangers and anyone found to be helping them.

"Elsa," came the low hiss of Mesogog's voice. "Make me a monster."

She turned to the reptile-man and smiled. "When do you want me to unleash it on the city?"

"Tomorrow night. These battles are so much more dramatic at night, don't you think?" Mesogog folded his hands behind his back. "The monster must be able to put the zords permanently out of commission. See that there are no errors."

He left the room. Elsa smiled to herself. Any monster would put the zords out of commission considering the state they would be in. She picked up three jars and placed them in the Geno-Randomizer. This monster would easily do what Mesogog asked. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Thanks for the reviews guys! I feel like I should do some reviewer responses, but with midterms coming up, I've barely had time to write. But keep up the great reviews and I'll do my best to do the responses for the next chapter! Thanks! -Etcy 


	12. We Got Each Other

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Twelve: We Got Each Other**

"See, he's still asleep."

"Doesn't surprise me, he sleeps through everything." There was a pause. "And it's still really early for him."

Leo blinked a couple of times in the early morning sunlight. Where was he? He looked around and realized that he was still on Tommy's couch, where he had dozed off last night. Why hadn't anyone got him up to go back to the hotel? And where had Eric, TJ and Cole spent the night since their quarters for this mission where in Tommy's living room? Someone had covered him with the afghan. And there were people coming in the front door.

He sat up and realized he was still wearing his clothes from the previous day, although it should figure since he had fallen asleep on the couch and his bag was back at the hotel. Well, the bag belonged to Kendrix, but he borrowed it all the time. It was the perfect size to pack sufficiently for a trip, but not so large that it couldn't fit in the overhead compartments. He ran a hand through his messy hair. In general, he didn't think he looked too bad just out of bed, but then again, most of the people here had not seen him just out of bed.

Wes and Eric were coming through the front door with a blonde woman. He rubbed his eyes and tried to focus on them. The woman looked a lot like Kendrix. In fact…

"Kendrix?" he asked, his voice scratchy on account of the early hour.

"Hey Leo," she said softly, crossing the room to him and sitting on the couch next to him. He could scarcely believe it. Only last night they had been screaming at each other on the phone and here she was, in his arms. He held her close, burying his face in her hair, breathing in the vanilla scent there. He didn't even want to ask what she was doing here. It was more than enough that she was here.

"I'm sorry," he whispered.

She gently pushed away from him. Her dark blue eyes were glistening with tears. "There were extenuating circumstances."

Eric cleared his throat loudly. Leo looked up at the pair of Silver Guardians. "How?" he asked. Wes and Eric exchanged a glance.

"It was all Cole's fault," Wes explained. "He knew you were upset about something last night once we got back. Eric figured out what it must be."

"I flew out early this morning," Kendrix added with a smile. "Wes called me last night and asked if I wanted to come out." She paused. "Mr. and Mrs. Cleghorn are supposed to watch the house while we're gone."

Mr. and Mrs. Cleghorn were a retired couple who lived next door to them in Seabrook. Mrs. Cleghorn was a busybody to no end and would probably love the chance to snoop around in their house in their absence. She also thought it was strange that Kendrix worked and that they had no children—and she delighted in espousing that view every time she saw them.

"That ought to have interesting results," he muttered. "Mrs. Cleghorn will probably redecorate everything in puce."

Kendrix playfully smacked his arm. "She's nice." He rolled his eyes.

"Here," Wes called and tossed something his direction. Leo held a hand up and caught the keys to the rental car. "Hope you have your room key because we switched rooms last night on account of this."

"Huh?"

It was Wes' turn to roll his eyes. "Carter and I switched rooms so that you and Kendrix could have the room to yourself this morning. That way I would already be up and away and Carter and Jason wouldn't have to worry about getting up early."

Trust Wes to plan everything to this extent. Leo gave him a lopsided grin and located his shoes on the floor next to the couch. In seconds, he and Kendrix were out in the rental car and he was kissing every bit of exposed skin on her.

"Leo," she said with a laugh. "I know we've made love in the back of a car before, but we don't need to do that again." She gently pushed him away in an effort to get him to drive to the hotel.

He reluctantly released her and gave a glance to the backseat of the car. "Doesn't sound like a bad idea to me."

Kendrix smacked his upper arm. "Drive," she commanded. "And you can ravish me all you want once we get to the hotel."

He grinned at her and started the car. As he drove to the hotel, he thought back to their phone conversation last night. Well… they needed to have a talk about that in addition to the other obvious activity he had planned.

* * *

This was the life, sitting in a lawn chair on his front porch, drinking beer at four o'clock in the afternoon… Maybe he once this mess with Mesogog was over he would move to Galveston and sit around with Jason drinking beer and crushing beer cans on his forehead. Adam had come over after school let out in Angel Grove and was drinking beer with him. The beer supply at his house had quadrupled since the other red rangers had arrived.

"It's weird," Adam said, probably more to himself than to Tommy.

"What? That we're rangers again?"

"That. And this is the first time I've cancelled soccer practice since becoming the coach."

Tommy laughed. "Sometimes we all need a break."

"Yeah, well…" Adam sighed. "I guess I just feel like this is more important."

"And it's not much fun sitting around waiting to see what will happen next."

"But didn't we spend all of high school doing that?"

Adam did have a point there. First it had been waiting to see when Rita and Zedd would unleash their next monster on Angel Grove or putty attacks. Then it had moved on to King Mondo and the cogs and monsters that came along with that. Finally, they had battled Divatox and her plans for galactic domination before they had passed the Turbo powers onto TJ, Cassie, Ashley and Carlos. It was always waiting. Just like now… waiting to see what Mesogog had planned next. Although, Mesogog was oddly quiet. The last monster attack had been Tuesday night and it was Thursday afternoon. Normally, if Mesogog wanted something (like the purple Dino-Gem) then he unleashed monster after monster until he either had what he wanted or he realized that his efforts to get it were fruitless.

"We did spend all of high school doing that," Tommy agreed.

"It's kind of fun being back in the action." Adam paused. "I hadn't realized how much I missed it until it came back."

Tommy asked the question that had truly been on his mind since the Dino-Gems had bonded with Billy, Adam and Kimberly. "What made you guys pick up the gems? I mean Billy hadn't touched them before…"

Adam shrugged. "It was like the thing was calling to me. I looked at the orange gem and I just picked it up, not even thinking." He paused again. "I'm also liking the power that came with it—I don't run into the furniture at my apartment nearly as much now."

Phasing… Adam could walk through solid objects. That could have its advantages if they ever needed to storm Mesogog's island fortress or something.

"It's kind of cool," Adam was continuing. "Like we're the X-men or something."

Tommy smiled. Comic books had been a particular love of Adam's in high school and Tommy could recall boxes upon boxes of the things in the Parks' basement. He knew where all of Adam's allowance and part-time job money went.

"So where is everyone?" Adam asked.

"I have no idea," Tommy replied. "All I know is that the lot of them aren't invading my house and I finally have a little peace and quiet." He stopped, watching two cars come down the drive to his house. "Although it's not going to last long."

Billy's forest green Explorer pulled up, followed by Andros' red Kia Sportage. Tommy wondered at that. What was Andros doing here? Of course, it was also very likely that Andros wasn't driving it. It was always a gamble who was driving any given car lately. Billy got out of his car, followed by two girls who Tommy supposed were his daughters. The older girl looked exactly like Trini except that her eyes were a striking shade of blue. She was dressed conservatively in jeans and a blouse with a navy blue backpack slung over one shoulder and a laptop case in her free hand. The younger girl looked more like a cross between Billy and Trini. She had Trini's black hair, but her features were more angular like Billy's and she also had blue eyes. Her backpack sported Care Bears along with a Care Bears lunchbox and a stuffed Care Bear.

Billy had his briefcase and locked the car, calling at them to hurry. Tommy sat forward in his chair. "I didn't know you were bringing the whole family," he called.

The resident genius rolled his eyes. "They're coming to help me with the teleportation system."

Tommy wasn't sure if one was supposed to tell one's children that one was a Power Ranger—none of them had ever been in that situation. He supposed it would be really hard to hide from them after a while, especially if these two girls were as inquiring as they looked. The little one was bouncing up and down with excitement.

"We're going to help Daddy help the Rangers!" she chanted.

Billy rolled his eyes again. "This is Susie," he said, placing a hand onto of the younger girl's head as they walked up the porch. "And Mary Anne," he added, indicating the older, much calmer girl. "This is Tommy and Adam," he told the girls, introducing the pair on the porch.

"Hello!" Susie said, still bouncing with excitement. "Are you guys rangers too?" she asked quickly. "My daddy's a ranger and I think that's really cool!"

"Susie, shut-up," Mary Anne said, obviously tired of her younger sister's antics.

"Don't tell your sister to shut-up," Billy reprimanded Mary Anne. "And Susie, what have I told you about telling people that?"

"I know I'm not supposed to tell anyone, but these guys are rangers too, aren't they?"

Tommy and Adam exchanged a glance. "How old are you?" he asked Susie.

"Eight," Susie replied proudly. "And I'm in third grade!"

"Come on," Billy said to the two of them. "We need to get started." He looked back and for the first time, Tommy realized that Andros was standing on the porch as well. Tommy exchanged a knowing glance as Andros rolled his eyes and followed the family down to the lab. This was going to be amusing.

* * *

"We need to realign the setting so that the teleportation will be more accurate…" Mary Anne began reading off numbers that apparently made sense to her and Billy because there was no protest. Mary Anne was sitting on the ground next to the control panel with her laptop in her lap, which was apparently hooked up to the system. Susie was next to her father, dutifully handing him tools as he asked for them. Unlike Mary Anne and Billy, she wasn't nearly as interested in or focused on the task as they were. She had been talking almost nonstop to Andros. And for some reason, she wasn't annoying her older sister or father.

Andros thought she was a really sweet kid albeit a motor mouth. He thought briefly of Brian who said little unless prompted and Karone, just born who hardly cried. He and Ashley were not talkative people, so it stood to reason that their children would be rather subdued. It almost made him wonder where Susie got her talkativeness from. Billy wasn't all that verbose unless he had to be and, from what he had surmised about Trini, she wasn't all that noisy either.

He hadn't wanted to leave Ashley at the hospital, but she had decided he needed to get away from the place. He hadn't slept very much in the past two days since there really was no comfortable place for him to sleep in that hospital. 'Karone and I will be fine for a few hours,' she had said in that gently reprimanding tone she used when she thought he was being especially overprotective and ridiculous. 'Go back to Tommy's house and help out there or just sleep for a while and then come back. You need a break.'

As much as he didn't want to admit it, he was exhausted. And he was having trouble keeping up with the constant chatter that came out of Susie. He didn't know how Billy did it—if he had a child like this, she would wear him out in less than a day.

"And we're practicing our cursive letters," Susie was saying. "I don't like it very much, but Miss Mason says we have to learn that for when we're all grown up." Susie had her Care Bear (who Andros had been informed was Good Luck Bear) leaning against her knee.

Billy slid out from underneath the control panel. "Susie, try being silent for a while and quit wearing Andros' ear out."

"I'm not wearing his ear out! His ear's still on!" she protested, studying Andros' ears to make sure that she was right.

"Susanne Marie," Billy said in a warning tone of voice.

"Okay, okay!" Susie relented. "I'll be quiet!"

"That's what she gets all her demerits for in class," Billy muttered shaking his head. "Miss Mason is forever telling me she's a good student, but she can't be quiet." He paused. "We're taking a break," he told the girls. "Go upstairs and see if Tommy has any popsicles or something."

Mary Anne closed the lid to her laptop and grabbed Susie's hand, dragging her upstairs. "Bye Mr. Andros!" Susie called as she and Good Luck Bear trailed along behind Mary Anne.

Billy shook his head. "That one will be the death of me."

Andros smiled. "She does talk a lot."

"And I know exactly where she got it from," Billy said with a small smile.

"Obviously not from you or Trini."

"No…" Billy replied, trailing off. "She got it from Joanna."

"Joanna?"

"Hayley's roommate from undergraduate school," the genius clarified. "About six months after Trini died, I was hanging out with her. She talked a lot."

Andros nodded. "So what happened?"

Billy shrugged. "We went our separate ways." He paused. "Besides, I have already been informed by Miss Susie that she wants Kimberly to be her new mother."

Andros looked up sharply. "Since when are you and Kim an item?"

Billy looked rather sheepish. "Since last night."

The Space Ranger shook his head and laughed. "And the gossip will be running through the ranks again." He paused. "If you don't want it to get out then make sure you don't tell Eric or Wes. They tend to tell everyone everything."

"Tell me what?"

They both turned to see Eric walking down the stairs to the lab. "Nothing," they both said in unison.

Eric rolled his eyes. "I just sat through a movie that was two hours of my life I'm never going to get back and you two can't tell me what's going on? I even had to sit through it with a bunch of losers and then we lost Cole."

"You lost Cole at the movies?" Andros asked his voice incredulous.

Eric shrugged. "We went to see _Resident Evil Apocalyse_ and Cole went to get some Skittles, got lost and ended up seeing _the Princess Diaries 2_."

"Does he want to see it again? I know Susie would love for someone to take her," Billy said with a grin.

"You'll have to ask him."

"When did you realize you lost him?" Andros asked, interested as to how that happened.

"About halfway through the movie, when the girl cop had to shoot her friend." He paused as they started gaping at him. "What?" he asked defensively. "It made me think about what would happen if that really happened and I had to shoot Cole and then I realized he was missing."

Billy and Andros exchanged a glance. It was never dull around this place.

* * *

Leo sighed, feeling contented for the first time in weeks. The late afternoon sun was coming through the window. Kendrix was snuggled up against him, dozing lightly. He hadn't heard from anyone in the group all day and it made him wonder why Mesogog had not pulled another stunt yet. Well… he banished the thought. He had all he would ever need right here in his arms. He pressed an awkward kiss to Kendrix's temple.

"Leo," she said in a sleepy, yet happy tone. "Don't start that yet. There's something I need to tell you."

'Yes, you do,' he thought, but didn't say anything as she sat up in bed and he had to keep from gawking at her gorgeous body.

She gently took his hand and rested it on her abdomen, just below her belly button. She held it there with her own hands. He felt confused and a puzzled look found its way over his face. Kendrix obviously noticed it, because she rolled her eyes. How many times had she accused him of being dense on purpose? Well, this time it wasn't on purpose, he just didn't understand.

"Leo," she said softly. "You know a couple months ago when we decided to stop using birth control?"

He nodded and then realization slowly dawned over him. "You're pregnant?" he asked. Kendrix smiled and nodded. "You're goofy!" he yelled, tackling her under him on the bed. He gently pushed stray strands of blonde hair out of her face. "Is this what you didn't want me to know? What you were afraid to tell me?"

"I don't know," she said, still smiling. "It's just that you've always avoided the subject of kids and stuff…" She trailed off.

"Why would I agree to the no birth control thing if I didn't want kids?" he countered.

"I don't know," she repeated. Then she gave him a fierce look. "Leave me alone! My hormones are all out of sync!"

"You are a damnable woman," he muttered, capturing her lips in an intimate lip-lock that silenced all of her protests and excuses. He broke the kiss abruptly when she reached up behind him and smacked the back of his head.

"That's not nice!" she reprimanded. She then looked at the digital alarm clock and groaned. "We should probably go see what's happening at Tommy's house." She turned her dark blue gaze back to him and gently took his face between her palms. "Are you sure about this? You really want this?"

"Of course I do!" he replied, taking her palm and kissing it.

Kendrix smiled. "Is this just another way you can prove to Mike that you're mature enough to do these things before him?"

Leo rolled his eyes at the mention of his older brother. It was true that he had gotten married before Mike and now he was going to be a father before Mike… but that didn't mean it was a contest. All right, so maybe it was something resembling a contest, but Mike had babied him and their younger sister for so many years, he always felt that he had to prove himself.

"I'm not going to answer that," he said delicately. "I think we should take a shower and get over to Tommy's to see what is happening."

Kendrix groaned. "This is going to be a long shower."

"Why do you say that?" he asked innocently.

"Because I know more things about you than you do."

Surprisingly enough, their showers went quickly and, before he knew it, they were back in the rental car on the way to Tommy's house. Kendrix rested her hand on his upper thigh and it drove him crazy with desire, but he put a check on it. He was going to be a father… God, it was a prospect he should have thought about but never did. Well… he was going to do his best not be like their parents… His father died when he was twelve, Mike was thirteen… Their mother went off the deep end with grief… She was part of the reason all of them left home as soon as they could… Mike went to GSA, Leo stowed away on Terra Venture… and Ella, their younger sister, who knew where she was now, even if she was dead or alive…

Just as they entered Tommy's house, the alarm chimes on the Dino Thunder morphers were going off.

"Another monster?" he asked Billy who was passing.

"Looks like it," the Green Dino Thunder Ranger replied. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Thanks to all the new and old reviewers alike! I've gotten some great feedback from you guys and also some people with a sharp eye for detail. I've loved the reviews! And I promise that there will be some serious action in the next chapter. For now (since I've been promising to do it for a while), I'd like to do some reviewer responses for people who reviewed chapter 11:

**Anonymous**- Thanks for your kind words! You aren't the only one who's found the Billy/Kim pairing odd. :) I'll update as often as I can.

**Charles RocketBoy**- I hope this chapter answered your questions about Leo and Kendrix. We just got to the beginning to Elsa and Mesogog's latest plot-- you'll have to wait for the next chapter to see what happens. :) And I hope that things are getting interesting and not boring. I said that I was trying to get away from the predictable Tommy/Kim pairing. There it is. :) Thanks for your review!

**cmar**- Thanks! :) The action is coming, I promise! Thanks for the kind words and the review in general! :)

**Funky In Fishnet**- I shall endeavor to keep updating in a timely fashion. The Billy/Kim pairing is from left field in my attempts to not follow the normal clique subplots. Thank you for your kind words! I enjoy these characters immensely and I'm glad it shows in the writing.

**jim hawking jr.**- Thanks for your kind words. I'm glad you're still enjoying the story!

**rembrandt**- I'm glad you like the developing subplot between Billy and Kim. They always were two of my favorite characters as well. Ah, back in the day when we got up earlier than we had to for school to watch new episodes of MMPR. But thanks for your kind words!

**sayinjinj7**- I plan on continuing. (I'm actually further ahead in the writing than I have posted. So in case I want to take a break or have writer's block, there's still something for you guys to read.) Thanks for you kind words. I'm glad you enjoy it!

**Silver Warrior**- Leo and Cole are very similar. And while I can see the great couple that Cole and Maya would make, I think both of them have other significant others in this fic. (Cole is still going out with Alyssa, even though he's unsure of the relationship and I think I talk about Maya being with Mike in this chapter.) But I can see the pairing. Would make for an interesting story premise... Thanks for your kind words!

**SilverRider**- Eric's not really an idiot, he's just very at home with this bunch of guys and sees no need to follow the normal constructs of society. I know he sounds like an airhead at times, but it's all in good fun. :) I'm glad you enjoy the story and my characterization of Eric.

**white time ranger**- Glad you like the Billy/Kim pairing. I was trying to steer away from the predictable. I always thought that that would be interesting, especially since they switched bodies and whatnot. But I'm glad you're liking the story!

**William Raymer**- Welcome to the review board of this fic! :) Thanks for your kind words! And thanks for tuning me in to when CSI Miami is on. I don't normally watch it. It was just the first show that came to mind when I was writing this chapter. (I have a friend who watches it religiously solely because the theme song is a 'Who' song. lol. Probably why I thought of it.) Thanks for reviewing! Continue to let me know what you think!


	13. Giving In Can't Be Wrong

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Thirteen: Giving In Can't Be Wrong**

The alarm chimes were going off. Tommy raced down the stairs to the lab two at a time and pulled up the surveillance screens on the computer. A monster was attacking the city—luckily enough for them it was normal-sized and not ten stories tall. Billy was down there in an instant with Adam at his heels. The genius kicked away the parts of the unfinished teleportation system and studied the monster.

"Looks like your normal, run-of-the-mill monster," Billy commented.

"We'd better get everyone here," Adam added unnecessarily.

Tommy punched a few keys on the computer and soon he had communication links up with Conner, Ethan, Kira, Trent and Kimberly. "Guys, we've got trouble," he said into the microphone on the desk of the computer.

"Another monster?" Trent asked over the line.

"Trouble is my middle name!" Conner proclaimed.

"Get to the lab!" Tommy ordered them.

Adam was rolling his eyes at Conner's statement. "He's trouble all right," the soccer coach muttered. "Although I'm not entirely sure that it's a good kind of trouble."

Billy looked at his watch. "When this is over, I'm going to work full-time on that teleportation grid. It's ridiculous that we have to wait for everyone to drive here."

Tommy listened to the pounding upstairs for a moment. "There's enough people upstairs to send an army if we needed to."

"But how many of them can still morph?" Adam asked.

"More than you'd think," Tommy muttered. He watched the surveillance screen where the monster was terrorizing people. The civilians were running for cover and the monster seemed to be doing nothing more than making a mess. It wasn't targeting civilians like most of the previous monsters had. This was strange. Was Mesogog trying to draw them out for whatever reason that demented reptile had?

A few minutes later, they heard the front door bang open and the thundering footsteps down to the lab. Conner appeared, followed by the other teen rangers. "We're here!" he said loudly before running over the screens and studying the monster.

"Looks typical enough," Ethan said with a shrug.

Conner turned to Billy. "Dude, you really need to get that teleportation system done!" Billy gave him an acid glare. Conner gulped. "Sorry," he apologized quickly. "I forgot about the 'dude' thing."

Kimberly burst into the lab. "What's going on?"

Tommy took a quick inventory of the Dino Thunder rangers—all eight of them were present and accounted for in the lab. The former red rangers, Kendrix and Ashley were all either upstairs or still at the hospital. Hayley was still at the café. Tommy gave Trent a meaningful look. He caught it and nodded.

"Hayley will be here when once she closes up," he said.

He looked at the monster on the screen, and then he glanced at the corner of the screen. Elsa was standing there. Great, just what they needed, a deformed monster and a crazed cyborg all in one night. He glanced at Billy.

"Where are Mary Anne and Susie?" he asked.

Billy frowned. "Upstairs with Cole, why?"

Tommy looked at all of them. He turned to Conner, Ethan, Kira and Trent. "You guys go up and see what that monster wants." He looked to Kimberly and Adam. "You guys go with them. They might need your zords if that thing grows."

The six of them nodded. There was a loud cry of 'Dino thunder, power up!' or variations thereof and they appeared morphed. They left the lab via the raptor-cycles with Kimberly and Adam borrowing the yellow and blue Raptor-Riders. He and Billy exchanged a glance.

"Are we dealing with the crazy lady out there?" Billy asked mildly.

"Yes," Tommy replied. "And anyone here is standing guard."

Billy nodded and they sprinted up the stairs two at a time. Mary Anne was typing away quickly at her laptop and Susie was playing a travel-sized version of Candy Land with Cole. The Wild Force ranger looked up at their noisy entrance. "Cole," Billy said. "Make sure Mary Anne and Susie stay safe. Don't leave the house."

"Where're you going?" Susie asked.

Wes came in from the kitchen. "What's going on?" he asked. "Everyone else is on the back porch. What do we need to do?"

"Keep the lab and gem safe," Tommy instructed.

"Daddy!" Susie wailed after Billy as they ran back down to the lab.

"I'll be back soon!" he called up to her. He and Tommy exchanged another glance.

"Ready?" Tommy asked.

Billy nodded, pulling in ragged breaths.

"Dino thunder, power up!"

And they were off on the black raptor-cycle and Raptor-Rider to face Elsa.

* * *

Conner McKnight could not understand two things about this monster. First, it was just running around creating chaos, but not doing any actual damage. Second, it was attacking at night. Mesogog almost never had monsters attack at night. Well, the last one had but that was a recent trend. Most of the time the monsters attacked during the day, when there were more people out to terrorize. That would make the most sense for Mesogog's overall plot—attack during the day and get rid of the most humans. But this was mind-boggling.

He pulled his raptor-cycle to a halt near where the monster was—in the middle of the patio of a ritzy restaurant. There didn't appear to be any people there anymore. Mostly, the monster had knocked over tables and chairs, creating a mess from the plates, food and other things on the tables. The thing was just jumping up and down in the middle of the mess it had made. Confusion ripped across his mind. What was going on?

He got off his raptor-cycle and the others dismounted from their cycles and riders. He didn't really like going places without Doctor O. When Doctor O wasn't here, then the others tended to assume that since he was the Red Ranger, he was the leader. He hated being the leader—it made him feel like if he made a mistake, something horrible would happen. That probably wasn't true, but it remained a personal paranoia of his. He glanced back to make sure he still had everyone, especially the flashes of pink and orange. This was their first time to fight with the older Dino Thunder Rangers… but then, everyone who had received the newest Dino-Gems had been rangers before. Maybe that was the gems way of putting more experience on the team.

"Just who I was looking for!" the monster squealed.

"Oh, you found us," Conner muttered.

The monster giggled inanely. "What is it?" Ethan asked. "A cheerleader on steroids?"

Conner called his Tyranno-Staff out of his belt. "Let's not let it sick around to find out," he said in the general direction of Ethan.

He turned slightly to see that everyone else had called out their weapons as well. Kim had an ax—it was kind of funny looking with its swirl of pink and white… almost like those Starburst candy canes they sold at Christmas. However, the thing looked deadly enough. Adam had a quiver full of arrows and a bow. Now that looked more normal—it was just orange, brighter than a shade of leather one would expect. He glanced at his own weapon… he could sympathize with Kim on the candy cane thing.

Letting loose a battle cry that rivaled any of the old black and white, Cowboys and Indians movie, Conner charged at the monster, the others falling into defensive formations behind him. He hit the thing square across the chest with his staff. The monster took an unsteady swing at him in retaliation and he rolled to the side to avoid it. Kim and Kira took up the attack, both hitting the monster, sending sparks flying. The monster threw them both off as Ethan and Trent charged.

Adam had taken refuge behind one of the overturned tables and was fitting an arrow to the bow. Conner watched quickly as everyone had been thrown away from the monster and Adam quickly let loose an arrow. The arrow lodged right into the monster's heart and the thing began to stagger backwards.

"Z-Rex Blaster!" Conner yelled to Ethan and Kira.

Immediately, the Blue and Yellow Rangers were beside him and placing their weapons with the Tyranno-Staff to form their blaster.

"Fire!" they yelled in unison.

The monster let out an agonizing screech and then fell before them in bits of what looked like charred rubber. It smelt almost like charred rubber too. Almost immediately, a stream of rain came down and the monster began to form back together—one ten stories high this time.

"Not again," Conner groaned.

"This happen often?" Adam asked, as he vanished his bow and quiver.

"All the time," Kira assured him.

They all vanished their weapons just as Hayley's voice came over their communicators. "Brachio is on his way with the zords," she told them.

"All right!" Conner cried, watching as the huge carrier zord came down the street, grinding to a halt. The Tyranno, Tricera and Ptero-Zords jumped out of the Brachio-Zord and raced down the street to them. Conner jumped up and was transported into his zord as he knew that Ethan and Kira were. He placed his hands on the controls to log in. "Combine powers!" he commanded.

In a few seconds, the Mega-Zord was completely formed and Kira and Ethan were in the main control room with him.

"Let's get rid of this, bozo!" Ethan yelled. "Tricera fist!"

Conner froze as the command that usually worked unless it was deflected by the monster, didn't. The arm of the Mega-Zord that was made up of the Tricera-Zord didn't move. Conner tapped his controls, trying to override whatever lock might be on it.

"Hayley!" he called. "What's going on?"

"I don't know," came her voice. "Try one of the other arm zords."

"Ankylo-Zord," they heard Adam cry and in a few moments, the Tricera-Zord was running back to Brachio and the Ankylo-Zord was in place. Conner tried a few commands but nothing was working.

"Hayley," Kira yelled. "We could use some answers!"

The monster pulled back a huge fist and hit the Mega-Zord. Conner felt himself thrown from his zord and crashed onto the pavement. Kira and Ethan hit the ground beside. He watched in horror as the zords disassembled and lay on the ground twitching. A roaring started in his ears and he couldn't hear anything as he watched Trent and Kimberly try the Drago-Zord and the Stego-Zord. Both the zords went down as quickly as the Mega-Zord. The monster suddenly held a huge cannon and aimed it at the zords on the ground.

A blast of orange light blinded him for a moment and then his heart constricted. Their zords… that monster had just destroyed their zords. He scrambled to his feet and looked at the charred remains.

"Oh my God," he vaguely heard Kira say.

"Someone had to have tampered with the zords," Ethan cried.

"So what do we do now?" Kira asked.

Conner shook his head. He really didn't know.

* * *

Tommy skidded to a halt just in front of where the Mega-Zord was battling the ten story version of the monster. He watched in horror as the zords all disassembled and fell to the ground. The Drago and Stego-Zords went down as well. He and Billy swung around when they heard cold female laughter coming from behind them.

"Aw," Elsa said with an exaggerated look on her face. "Are you two going to cry now that you don't have any zords?"

"How?" Tommy asked, feeling his blood boil. Nothing like this could have happened to the zords unless someone had tampered with them.

"Don't you wish you knew," Elsa said in a sing-song voice. "You Power Ranger are such trusting fools, leaving your layer wide open while one of the washed-up power pukes has her baby? Don't even check your zords… well, say goodbye to them now!" She teleported out of the area with a crack of green light.

"Shit," Tommy swore. "Now what?"

He glanced at Billy. The Green Ranger suddenly called his weapons out of his belt and looked at the dagger that was the flute.

"The Dragon-Zord?" Tommy asked.

Billy shrugged. "Now's the time to find out." He placed the flute to his lips and played the familiar notes that brought the Dragon-Zord out the sea. Nothing seemed to have happened.

"Try it again," Tommy urged.

Billy played the tune again. He glanced to Tommy and then kept repeating it. Suddenly the streets began to shake and a huge Godzilla-like zord appeared lumbering down the street. It roared a friendly greeting in the direction of Billy. Tommy felt his heart catch in his throat as he remembered all the days he had spent with the Dragon-Zord and controlling it. Now the zord was coming back to help the newest generation of rangers. They had thought it might be true—and then never got around to finding out. Now it was true…

"The monster!" Billy directed the zord.

The Dragon-Zord roared and ambled off in the direction of the monster. The monster turned and aimed the cannon at the zord. It just screeched again and knocked the cannon away with its tail.

"Awesome!" he heard Conner yell as the other rangers ran over to join them.

"It's the Dragon-Zord!" Kimberly yelled.

"Missiles!" Billy yelled at the zord. The Dragon-Zord's fingers transformed and little red missiles lined up in the fingers. "Fire!" Billy directed.

The Dragon-Zord fired and the monster staggered backwards, screaming in rage over the indignity of it. Somehow, the thing found its cannon again and blasted the Dragon-Zord square in the chest. The zord fell over and began to struggling to get up. Billy put the flute to his lips and played the tune that revitalized the zord.

Tommy's heart was pounding. This had to work. It was their last chance. Mesogog had just succeeded in destroying all of their zords. The Dragon-Zord had to hang on a little while longer and it would destroy the monster. He hadn't realized he was holding his breath, until the zord got back up and he let out a long breath.

The Dragon-Zord gave a mighty swing with its tail and connected with the monster, causing the monster to fall over and burst into flames. The zord ambled over to them giving another powerful roar. Billy shook his head. The zord roared again.

"They're alive?" Billy asked.

Tommy felt like he was going to have a heart attack. "You can understand what he's saying?" he asked.

Billy shrugged. "Can't you?"

"No."

"He says that the other zords are still alive, but barely. He can put them back in Brachio and get them back to the zord bay. He thinks they were sick before they came out."

"Sick?" Tommy asked. "How?"

"A virus!" Ethan piped up. "Someone probably put a virus on them."

Tommy groaned and looked to Billy. "Elsa said that we hadn't protected the zords when Ashley had her baby. That's probably when she planted the virus." Seething with anger, he turned around and kicked at an overturned table. "Goddammit!" he yelled.

The Dragon-Zord roared. "Get to it quickly!" Billy said. "We'll meet you at the lab." He then hauled Tommy up. "We need to go."

Tommy could not believe their fatal error as he climbed back onto his raptor-cycle and everyone headed back for the lab. There were so many of them there and they had let their guard down. Now they had no zords.

* * *

Some time later, Tommy was facing the Dino Thunder rangers in the lab. Nothing had come towards the house or the lab and everyone there was safe, albeit rather alarmed by their hasty exit earlier that evening. He was pacing. He hated pacing. It was an outward sign that he felt defeated and everyone could tell. He heard voices upstairs and he knew that everyone in any way involved with the distress signal and Billy's daughters were present. The only ones not present were Ashley and baby Karone for obvious reasons.

They needed to stay safe through the night. The zords would wait until morning—they had the Dragon-Zord if something came up before then. He didn't know what to do and everyone was looking at him expectantly. The greatest ranger ever… the legendary one… he snorted inwardly. Some leader he was making now. He was the only one to loose it when the zords were, for all intents and purposes, destroyed. The Dragon-Zord, per Billy, claimed that they were still 'alive,' but Tommy wasn't holding his breath. With the zords beyond all use, it was like a part of them had been ripped out. The zords were such an integral part of being a ranger and of doing battle as a ranger. Now theirs were gone…

He gazed at their tired faces. "We need security all around the house," he said slowly.

"We could sleep on the porches," Conner suggested. Ethan gave him an incredulous look and Kira smacked him on the back of the head. "What?" he asked, obviously not understanding the source of their disgust.

"That's not a bad idea…" Tommy replied, trailing off. If they slept on the porches, then the people with the strongest powers would be the ones attacked first and more likely to prevent something from happening to the others. He snapped to attention. "Billy, Kimberly, Kira and Trent," he said, each one looking up as their name was mentioned. "You guys sleep on the back porch. Me, Adam, Conner and Ethan will sleep on the front."

"But what about everyone else?" Trent asked. "Should they be on guard?"

"We can't put their lives in danger!" Kira protested.

"They willing came here to put themselves in danger," Tommy replied, stopping all arguments. "And most of them still have their morphers." He paused. "I want everyone without a morpher to sleep in the lab. It will be safer for them that way."

"Want to tell them that?" Conner suggested as he stood up. "I'll be back. We've got a lot of a sleeping bags and camping equipment at my house we can use."

"I'll go with you," Kira volunteered and the two of them were off.

Tommy left the lab and the remaining Dino Thunder rangers, slowly climbing the stairs to the hallway, leading into the living room. Everyone in the living room looked completely morose, yet ready to jump into action. He took a mental roll call. Everyone was indeed here, including Kendrix who had arrived that morning. He took in a deep breath.

"I want everyone who does not have a morpher to sleep down in the lab tonight." That meant Cole, Hayley, Mary Anne and Susie. Susie had already attached herself to Cole and was sitting in his lap. The four of them began to move in the direction of the lab. He glanced at the remaining people. "Jason, Leo and Kendrix, stay with them." They nodded. That meant they would be working as a kind of bodyguard for the people with no morphers.

He took another deep breath. "Wes and Eric guard the entrance to the lab in the house. Carter and TJ take the entrance underground in the lab." He glanced at the last person he had not given an assignment to—Andros. "Andros, go to the hospital and stay with Ashley." He paused. "I don't know what's going to happen, but I want to make sure that everyone here stays safe and in one piece." Not mutated into a dino-creature, he said inwardly.

Everyone nodded and slowly began to disperse into the directions they had been sent. Tommy sighed watching the fear and determination dance across each person's eyes. Everyone had their own reasons to be scared—family never to be seen again, dear friends, quiet little houses that provided lots of respite. He watched Kendrix follow Leo down to the lab. He had yet to get the full story on that—Wes was involved which said something. He shook his head. He just hoped that they would survive the night. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Reviews appeared to have dropped off at the last update. If you guys are in the same boat I'm in, then midterms are smacking you in between the eyes. I completely understand. (This is why I'm several chapters ahead in the actual writing than I have posted.) I just sat through a nasty American Lit midterm today... but enough of that! Thanks for all the reviews! :)


	14. Hold On To What We Got

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Fourteen: Hold On To What We Got**

Conner tried to navigate the stairs down to the lab while holding an armful of sleeping bags. He had barely escaped his house—lying through his back teeth to his mother about why he was sleeping over at someone's house on a school night. Kira had backed him up on everything, saying that the sleepover was more like a real life experience sleeping on an archaeological dig or something. His mother had looked dubious, especially when he raided the camping closet and put all the sleeping bags, cots, air mattresses and spiffy pads that went under the sleeping bags in the back of his car. He had then snitched a bag of Oreos and a twelve-pack of Coke from the pantry, hopefully without his mother knowing until he got far away. Kira had given him a look that clearly asked, 'And what are you going to do with those?'

"Midnight snack," he had hissed, before hiding it under the sleeping bags.

Now he was trying to get downstairs to take the sleeping bags to the people that had to sleep in the lab. He thought he had made it down, but missed the last step, lost his balance and ended up falling on his rear end. Luckily enough, he still had all the sleeping bags.

There was some male laughter and a female voice said, "Are you all right?"

Ethan was standing on the step above him with some of the air mattresses. "That was seriously graceful, man," he said with a grin.

Conner glared at Ethan and dumped the sleeping bags on the floor. A blonde woman was standing over him. She was kind of pretty and slim with her eyes hidden behind a pair of wire-framed glasses. She was offering him a hand up. He gladly took it and let her haul him to his feet. "You must be Conner," she said with a smile.

He nodded. "That's right. And you are…?"

She smiled one of those hundred-watt smiles. "I'm Kendrix." She paused and pointed at Leo. "I belong to him," she said in an easy, joshing tone that said she was going to play into male ego trips, but didn't really believe in them. Leo rolled his eyes.

"Let's get these sleeping bags out," Cole said, moving Susie from where she had been half-asleep on his lap and setting her in the captain's chairs in front of the computer. He moved to help pick up the sleeping bags.

"So it's the new, new guy?" came another voice tinged with a slight accent that Conner would have described as New York, but he wasn't sure. He looked up to see Jason moving to help with the sleeping bags. He had forgotten that the original Red Ranger was going to be down in the lab with the people without morphers.

"I guess so," Conner replied with a shrug.

Jason looked from Cole back to Conner. "New guys," he said shaking his head.

"Weren't you all the 'new guy' at one point in time?" Kendrix asked. She pulled a faded 'My Little Pony' sleeping bag out of the pile. Conner recognized it as one that used to belong to his little sister when she had been much younger. Kendrix spread it out over the already existing air mattress and tucked Susie into it along with her Good Luck Bear.

"Not me," Jason said. Susie fell asleep almost the moment she was in the sleeping bag. "Cute sleeping bag," Jason added in an undertone. He gave Conner an appraising look. "Was it yours?"

Conner stared at him in disbelief. "No. It was my little sister's."

Jason laughed. "Don't look so mortified, kid. I was just teasing ya'." He paused as Leo and Cole began to blow up the air mattresses. Mary Anne, the other girl who belonged to Billy, was sitting in the other captain's chair with her laptop. Like her sister, she looked ready to collapse on the spot. "You have a big family?" Jason asked him.

"I guess so," Conner replied. Ethan handed over all the remaining air mattresses and then headed back upstairs. "I have a twin brother, an older sister and a younger sister."

"Middle child syndrome?"

He shrugged. "Not really. There are two of us who tie for the middle." He paused and looked at Jason. "Do you have any siblings?"

Jason cracked a smile. "Two older sisters." He shuddered dramatically. "I sympathize with the older sister bit, kid, really I do."

Leo wandered over to them as Cole was finishing with the air mattresses and Kendrix was talking softly to Mary Anne. "I've got an older brother and a younger sister," he said with a grin.

"Good Lord!" Jason said empathically. "Two middle children."

Conner looked at Leo. "Did you have middle child syndrome?"

Leo shook his head. "My little sister is four years younger than me. When there's that much of an age gap, it's almost like being an only child. I think if I really had to identify with a birth order it would be the youngest."

Jason frowned. "How far apart are you and Mike?"

"A year," Leo replied. "I guess you could say that me and Mike were planned. My mother wanted two boys about a year apart. Then four years later, along came Ella."

"She was the mistake?" Jason asked.

"In every sense of the term," Leo stated, his features clouding.

Conner gaped at Leo. He couldn't imagine his parents ever treating one of them like they had been a mistake. Even if his parents had another baby now, they would still treat it like they treated the rest of the children. His father would always laugh and tell them how he always wanted a big family to go camping with—and they went camping all the time. His mother just smiled and held the family together with Band-Aides and paper bag lunches. His older sister was the bookworm, he and Eric were the athletes although Eric preferred more disciplined sports like karate and his little sister was the social butterfly. And they were all loved equally. None of them were treated like a mistake.

"Conner!" Ethan yelled from upstairs. "Doctor O says to get up here now!"

Conner groaned. "I've got to take up my post," he told them. "You guys got enough sleeping bags and stuff."

Jason and Leo looked around. "Shouldn't be a big deal," Jason told him.

Conner raced up the stairs two at a time and bolted out onto the front porch where he had left some sleeping bags and sleep pads. Doctor O and Coach were sitting in the lawn chairs gazing out at the night sky, the porch light casting a warm yellow glow over them. Ethan was sitting at the picnic table with a book. Conner sat down at the picnic table across from Ethan and dragged out his Oreos and Coke from where he had hidden them under the sleeping bags.

"Hungry, are you?" Ethan asked.

"Midnight snack," Conner replied.

"It is midnight," Doctor O added, glancing at his watch.

"See?" Conner said with a grin as he opened the package of Oreos and began to eat.

* * *

TJ looked around at the, for all intents and purposes, dank cave that he and Carter were going to have to spend the night in. Because they would have been sleeping on a dirt floor otherwise, they had gotten some collapsible army-type cots that Conner's family apparently used when camping. The cots weren't too uncomfortable and the sleeping bags didn't smell musty and unused. On the contrary, they smelled like they were used frequently, like someone had taken the time to wash them in between camping trips.

"I don't know what's going to happen, Dana," Carter was saying softly into his cell phone. "No… I want you guys to stay put in Mariner Bay." He paused and smiled into the phone. "Of course I'll be careful… I have my morpher. Okay… I love you too… Bye." Carter hung up the phone and let out a deep breath. TJ couldn't imagine how hard something like this had to be on him—he had a family back home to think about. Maybe it was time for all of them to take being a ranger off of the top of their priority list and replace it with their families. But there was no changing the situation now—Tommy needed all of the man power he could get in order to fight off Mesogog, especially since they only had one functional zord.

"Everything okay back home?" TJ asked.

Carter shrugged. "I just wish we knew what was going on so I could tell Dana." He paused, his gaze wistful. "She's scared," he said softly.

"Do you blame her?" he countered.

The Lightspeed Ranger shook his head. "I don't. I understand why she's scared. I just don't want anything to happen to them."

TJ remained silent. Carter's children were still so little, too little to lose their father in a freak accident of nature. If he remembered correctly from e-mails and baby shower invitations, Cory was three and Heather was eighteen months. What was it that had made any of them rangers in the first place? What made Tommy pass on his Turbo powers to him? What made Captain Mitchell pick Carter to be the Lightspeed Rescue red ranger? It all seemed to be a cruel trick of fate, giving them incredible powers and the ability to protect the earth and then it always came back to haunt them.

And that brought them here, facing Mesogog and everything that he could do to them, to their way of life. From the little that Tommy had said, TJ assumed that Mesogog knew about all of them—it wasn't that hard either, tracking morphers and power sources. If the reptile freak was smart, then he would want all of them out of the way, because if the Dino Thunder Rangers fell, then there would be other pissed off rangers to contend with. There were so many other rangers out there that they could call on to help—the rest of the Space Rangers, the Galaxy Rangers, the Lightspeed Rescue Rangers… and the list went on and on.

But most of them had families, children… lives that did not revolve around being rangers anymore. He thought briefly of the rest of the Turbo and Space Rangers. Andros and Ashley obviously did not need to be here, did not need this on top of their newborn baby, but they came anyways. Justin had started college back in Angel Grove and had a life and friends away from the Power Rangers. Carlos and Cassie were perfectly happy back in Angel Grove, with new lives and acquaintances. If called, they would come, but he didn't want to put any of them in danger. He supposed that that was the natural instinct of the red ranger of a team, even if he didn't remain the red ranger, to protect all the others and take the blows intended for the others.

"Hey guys."

They both turned to see Cole coming towards them from the group of people in various stages of sleep in the center of the lab. "Shouldn't you be in the lab?" Carter asked him.

Cole shrugged. "I am in the lab. If I go out that door," he pointed to the large door leading into the woods, "then I'll be out of the lab."

"He's been hanging out with Eric too much," Carter muttered.

TJ laughed. "Shouldn't you be getting some sleep?"

"I'm not tired," Cole responded. "It's just so hard waiting for something to happen."

"Don't I know the feeling," TJ muttered.

"Just try to get some sleep," Carter told him in a fatherly tone. "Jason and Leo will probably freak if they wake up and you're nowhere to be found."

Cole snorted. "They both sleep through earthquakes. I seriously doubt that they're going to wake up any time soon."

"That's true," Carter conceded.

"It's going to be a long night," Cole said, sitting down on one end of Carter's cot. TJ had to agree with him—it was going to be a long night.

* * *

Eric and Wes had given up trying to go to sleep ages ago. Right now, they were trying to focus on playing cards although neither one of them were quite awake for that. Eric tried to focus in on his cards and failed miserably. It was horrible, being sleepy, yet unable to sleep. He could recall a few times in his life when insomnia plagued him—and it always had to do with something ranger-related. Waiting was the worst thing that any of them ever had to do as rangers. He was also really glad that he had brought along his morpher. When packing, he had considered leaving it at home because the mission didn't sound particularly dangerous… it was getting to be dangerous now, what with that reptile loser on the move.

A light came on in the kitchen. Eric exchanged a quick glance with Wes before both of them jumped to action. They scrambled to their feet and were about to sneak over to the kitchen, when Billy stuck his head out of the door.

"It's just me, guys," he said. "I'm trying to get some coffee or hot chocolate or something for the guys on the back porch."

Eric rolled his eyes and followed Wes into the kitchen. Trust the genius ones to pull something like that when all of them were already so on edge. Billy was putting on a pot of coffee and boiling some water on the stove.

"Cold already?" Wes asked him.

Billy grimaced. "We're freezing."

"You'd probably do better with some whiskey than coffee," Eric muttered sarcastically.

"Seeing as there are two high school kids out there, I think the whiskey is not the best idea in the world," Billy countered, pulling mugs out of a cupboard. He paused as he put the mugs on the counter. "I should probably check on Mary Anne and Susie too."

Eric rolled his eyes as Wes glanced to him. "Do you leave them on their own a lot?" Wes asked, stating the question that the two of them had since they found out that Billy had two daughters.

Billy sighed. "Not usually. I know it seems like I have lately." He stopped, as if composing his thoughts. "I mean none of us have ever had to deal with this before, being an active ranger and a parent. Where do you strike the balance?"

"Indeed," Eric drawled, dropping into a chair at the kitchen table.

Wes rolled his eyes at him. Eric responded by sticking his tongue out. Yes, it was sad but true. The pair of them regressed when they were running on little or no sleep. Or when they had insomnia induced by a mutant dino-lunatic who wanted to return the earth to its prehistoric roots. Why couldn't Mesogog just want to rule the world like all the other crazy weirdoes that the other ranger teams had to deal with?

The water on the stove began to boil and Billy took it off the heat, pouring it into two of the mugs and adding hot chocolate powder.

"That stuff is so much better with milk and not water," Wes muttered.

Billy looked at the clock on Tommy's oven. "It's two o'clock in the morning. I'm not making anything fancy." He paused. "We all may be awake, but no one is alert." He then took the mugs out on the back porch.

Wes grabbed his arm. "Let's get back to our post. Who knows if those crazy Tyranno-drone things will teleport into the middle of the house."

"Sounds like we're in the army," Eric growled, but allowed himself to be dragged back to their post in the middle of the hallway, which had been covered in sleeping bags and throw pillows and more recently had cards spread everywhere. Well, he supposed that cards went flying when one went into a defensive stance.

Eric sank down against the wall, straining to hear noises. The only thing he could hear was Billy in the kitchen and the normal humming noises of a house. The front porch light was on and he could vaguely make out Conner and Ethan sitting at the picnic table. Wes half-fell into the mess of sleeping bag that was his.

"This is ridiculous!" Wes groaned. "None of us can sleep and nothing is happening!"

Eric glanced in the direction of the kitchen. "Notice anything odd about Billy?"

Wes looked up at him. "No. Nothing other than the normal attributes crazed geniuses who are widowers with two daughters have."

"Not that," he snapped. "Something more elusive." He paused. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say that he looked like he just got laid."

"Yeah, but by who?" Wes countered.

Eric could tell that Wes really didn't care about what he suspected. He picked up the cards and shuffled them, dealing out enough cards to play a variety of games.

"It's probably Kimberly," Wes said suddenly.

"What?"

"Kimberly," Wes repeated. "It's probably Billy and Kimberly."

"Are you serious?"

Wes shrugged. "It's my guess. Who else is there? I mean I think Tommy said his wife died something like eight years ago. Probably hasn't had much sex since then. And Kimberly is here and very available."

Eric didn't bother to insinuate that Wes was in the same boat ever since Jen went back to the year 3000 and left him in the present. He simply nodded in agreement and looked at his cards. For once, Wes had thought of something coherent in one of his half-asleep stupors.

* * *

Elsa smiled with satisfaction at the memory of how the zords had died. For once, one of their plans had succeeded. The rangers no longer had their zords… the matter of them coming up with an old zord, a practically ancient zord was of no consequence. The thing had managed to defeat a particularly weak monster and if she came up with a strong monster, the zord would fall along with all the others. Any attempts to revive the zords would be useless. The zords were gone.

"Elsa…"

She turned around to see Mesogog walking into the room. She had been staring at the jars containing specimens used in the Geno-Randomizer, contemplating what would be best to destroy that old zord with.

"Yes, my Lord," she replied.

"How are the island preparations coming?"

"Very well." She cracked an evil smile at the very memory of the latest plan. Mesogog was a pure genius when it came to ideas such as this. His latest plan to get rid of the rangers—and all their friends—was ingenious and it took the messy business of destroying the rangers out of their hands.

"Good," Mesogog hissed. "Once all the rangers are on that island, there will be nothing in between me and that gem. Then there will nothing stopping my dream."

Elsa decided now would be a good time to speak on a matter she had been thinking of while watching the scanner readings. "My Lord, what about the others…?"

"Others?" Mesogog asked.

"The ones without morphers or powers."

"Since there are only two of them, I except it will not be difficult to find them and bring them in with the others."

She nodded quickly. "Of course, my Lord."

"Send out the Tyranno-drones at first light and make sure that there are sufficient numbers of them. We do not want any mistakes." He paused, folding his hands behind his back. "You know what to do and where to put them once they are captured?"

"Yes, my Lord."

"Good." Mesogog crossed the room and sat in his chair, leaning back. "Very good."

* * *

Tommy blinked as he opened his eyes. For a moment, he wasn't sure where he was. Then he remembered he was sleeping on his front porch. They—Adam, Conner, Ethan and himself—had not actually gotten in their sleeping bags until close to four in the morning. It felt like it had taken him hours to fall asleep. He felt something hard lodged in the center of his back. He looked over his shoulder and found Conner curled up against his back. If it had been someone other than Conner, he would have been pissed, but since he felt a fatherly instinct towards his students, he let it slide. They were all cold.

The morning sky was gray. He glanced at his watch and realized that it would still be a few hours until the sun came up and some of the cold dissipated. A light mist was rising off the ground and Tommy could see his breath as he exhaled. This was not good weather to be sleeping outside in. Of course, camping was another story. They needed a car with a heater or an RV or something other than the great outdoors. He almost wondered when the sun would come up and they could go back in the house.

He sighed and pulled his sleeping bag over his head, while at the same time trying to maneuver away from Conner who would probably wake up and be mortified about where he had ended up sleeping. His sleep-deprived mind could only think of one thing.

They had made it. They had made it until morning. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** I was going to rant right here, but I've decided, in the words of Captain Hook, that that would be bad form. So I'm not going to, since it won't be worth the time and energy in the long run anyways. I'd like to thank everyone who has reviewed the last few chapters! It's nice to know that someone is out there reading and appreciating this fic. Just drop me a review and let me know what you think-- am I keeping up with all these people and keeping everything with certain subplots going all right? (That made a lot of sense...) But thanks for all the reviews! --EK

(Oh and Manders1953, I'm actually a sophomore in college and I'll be 20 in December. Scary thought, huh? But your logic was sound! I'm in a class called Modern American Literature: 1900 to the Present. I have to take it as one of the required classes for my major. At any rate, that review made me smile. You had a good guess! --EK)


	15. Worth Fighting For

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Fifteen: Worth Fighting For**

The first thing Conner was aware of the next morning was the bright sunlight burning straight through his eyelids. He opened his eyes and blinked against the strong, early morning sun. His next thought was of how cold he was. If there was any way of avoiding it, he was not sleeping on the porch tonight. His teeth chattered as he slowly sat up. Doctor O was sitting at the picnic table with a thermos of coffee.

"Morning," Doctor O said with a grin. Conner slowly got out of his sleeping bag, trying to keep his muscles from cramping at the cold. As quickly as he could with his hands shaking, he stuffed his feet into his hiking boots, not bothering to tie them, and scrambled into his parka. He was so cold that his chest and back hurt from shaking so much.

Doctor O offered him the thermos and he took it gratefully, sipping the warm coffee. Some feeling came back into his fingers as he held the thermos. He glanced around the porch and saw that Ethan and Adam were no longer there. Immediately, he felt a slight sense of panic. Had he overslept and not made it to school?

"What time is it?" he asked.

Tommy glanced at his watch. "Just before seven," he replied.

Good. That meant he hadn't missed or been late for school. "Where's…" He trailed off, his teeth chattering too much to speak coherently.

"Ethan's in the shower," came the answer without the whole question. "As soon as he's done, you should do that too." Tommy paused. "And Adam is inside warming up."

Conner took a deep breath and drank some more coffee. "I don't get it," he said once he had his teeth chattering under control. "I was comfortable last night and this morning I'm freezing."

Tommy snorted and looked out over his lawn. Conner felt his heart sink. Who had he been curled up against? He was so used to going camping with his family where everyone could sleep close together for warmth that, when he was asleep, he had probably forgotten that no one on the front porch was related to him.

"Who was I curled up against?" he asked in a resigned voice.

Doctor O smiled slightly. "Me. But I got up before everyone else, so no one saw."

"I guess that's good," Conner replied. His upper body involuntarily shook. "Look's like nothing tried to attack us last night."

"That's not to say they will," Tommy countered.

Conner paused for a moment. "Doctor O, do you want us to go to school today? I mean wouldn't it be easier to get a hold of us if we're here."

The doctor shook his head. "No. I want you guys to try and keep up with normal life. Being a Power Ranger won't do you any good if you fail science."

"Dr. Cranston did not tell you I failed my quiz!"

Tommy just laughed. "He did tell me." He paused. "But when all this is over, I expect you to spend some more time studying."

He frowned. "I think I need tutoring in that class. It was tough enough when you were teaching it, but Dr. Cranston is ten times worse."

"Maybe it's because he's overworked."

"Overwhelmed."

Conner drained the rest of the coffee, as Tommy laughed. Suddenly, there was a loud crack and a flash of green lightening. Tyranno-drones… Conner immediately fell into a defensive stance as Adam burst out the front door, followed closely by Ethan.

"Not these idiots!" Ethan groaned.

"I'm afraid so," Doctor O said dryly.

In unison, the four of them flipped off the porch and began to battle the Tyrrano-drones away from the house. Conner jumped to the left and deflected the first reptile with a kick square to the creature's chest. However, just as he pushed one back, two more would come forward. One grabbed him from behind. He did a standing handspring out of it and jumped back. He glanced over to the others. They didn't appear to be having anymore luck than they were.

"There's too many of them!" Adam yelled.

"We need to morph!" Conner replied.

In unison, they called, "Dino thunder, power-" But no one got any further than that. The Tyranno-drones swarmed on them and no one had a chance to complete the call that would morph them and give them the power they needed to fight off these creatures.

An invisi-portal opened up out of nowhere, the green swirling light of it looking more menacing that it ever had before. Conner struggled against the Tyranno-drones that held him, but it was useless. The dumb reptiles had them outnumbered significantly.

"NO!" he yelled just as they all went through the invisi-portal, leaving far behind Doctor O's house and any help that might have come.

* * *

Wes snapped awake as he heard someone thunder out of the house and slam the front door behind them. No one down in the lab would have heard that. He scrambled to his feet and ran to the front window in enough time to see some Tyranno-drones materialize out of the front yard with Tommy, Adam, Ethan and Conner.

"Shit!" he yelled to himself and then kicked Eric awake. "Eric! Come on!" He froze as he heard sounds of fighting coming from the back yard. Without a moment's hesitation, he ran through the living room and the kitchen and burst out the back door. More Tyranno-drones than he had ever thought possible to send were there. Billy, Kimberly, Kira and Trent were battling them, but there were too many of them. And they couldn't morph easily.

"Let's do this," Eric said with a menacing smile, cracking his knuckles.

"Time for Time Force!"

"Quantum Power!"

Wes felt the familiar spark that accompanied morphing and tended to put one's nerve endings on overdrive. He and Eric flipped off the back porch and assaulted the first Tyranno-drones they came to. Or more, battling the things away from the four Dino Thunder rangers in an effort to give them time to morph. What was wrong with these things? Normally brainless minions of an evil overlord attacked everyone. These things were only attacking the four who had been sleeping on the back porch. They were ignoring Wes and Eric, unless they attacked them first. What was going on?

He aimed a powerful kick square in the chest of one that had been assaulting Kira. The thing flew backwards. Three more surged in on them. Kira suddenly let out an eardrum-ripping scream that Wes supposed was her Ptera-Scream. He had only heard of that. The three who had run in, got knocked backwards. But for every one they drove back, at least two more came forward.

"It's morphin' time! Tyrannosaurus!"

"Go galactic!"

Wes turned around and saw Jason, Leo and Kendrix vaulting off the porch and into the action on the back lawn. Leo and Kendrix worked like a fluid team, deflecting the Tyranno-drones that had been attacking Kimberly. Wes smiled inside his helmet, swung around and hit an oncoming Tyranno-drone on the back of the neck. The thing crumbled to the ground.

"Dino thunder, power up! Ha!—White ranger, dino power!"

The Dino Thunder rangers managed to morph. But for all the Tyranno-drones that were defeated, more just came forward. It was like they were a computer virus, duplicating at rates that no one could predict or control.

"Where are they all coming from?" he heard Kendrix yell.

"I don't know!" Billy replied.

Kira did another Ptera-Scream, but it was to no avail. Nothing was working. The Tyranno-drones swarmed onto the Dino Thunder rangers like bees and in a flash of green light all of them were gone. Wes looked around, The dumb creatures had left himself, Eric, Jason, Leo and Kendrix, but had taken the other four.

"Power down," he said as the others did the same. "They've got Tommy, Adam, Ethan and Conner too," he said as they gathered together on the porch.

"Goddammit," Jason muttered. "How does someone like that just walk off with eight rangers that easily?"

"Maybe it was a change to those things programming," Leo suggested.

"Whatever it is, we need to make sure that Mesogog doesn't get a hold of that gem or anymore of us," Wes said empathically.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that."

They all turned to see a strange cyborg woman standing on the lawn. They had been so preoccupied that they hadn't seen her materialize. She had an unpleasant smile on her face along with an air that suggested she knew more than they did.

"You will soon join your friends."

"We'll see about that," Leo said hotly.

"Oh you can try to resist, but it will all be futile." She cackled in a menacing kind of way that made Wes shudder. With a crack of green lightening, she disappeared. They all looked at each other, wondering what it meant.

Finally, Leo spoke. "That's the woman who attacked me in the woods."

* * *

Leo sat in the lab, watching the tense faces all around. No one had ever believed it was possible for this to happen. All eight of the Dino Thunder rangers were gone and no solution was forthcoming. Hayley was typing away at the main control panel while Mary Anne was tinkering with the teleportation grid that was still incomplete. Carter had had enough presence of mind to call Andros and make sure that both he and Ashley had their astro-morphers with them at the hospital.

"Any luck yet?" Jason asked Hayley.

She shook her head. "I can't get a lock on an invisi-portal. If I could, I could send some of you through it to get them back. It's like Mesogog has done something to his firewall and it's preventing me from tapping into it." She paused and looked at Mary Anne. "If we can get the teleportation grid up and running, we could lock onto their gems or their DNA and get them out that way."

"Why DNA?" Wes asked idly.

Hayley gave him a bored look, clearly showing the strain on her face. "If Mesogog captured them, do you really think he would let them keep their morphers with them?"

"But don't the gems bond with their DNA?" Carter asked. "If we find one or the other, couldn't we find the missing one?"

"In theory," Hayley said. "We just need more time to get the teleportation grid up and running in a manner that won't endanger the people traveling by it."

"It needs more power," Mary Anne called from underneath the desk. "Is there any way we can get another power source?" She emerged from under the desk. Her brilliant blue eyes always seemed a strange contrast with her Vietnamese features.

"What kind of power?" Hayley asked her.

She shrugged. "Anything. Just a normal cord with a plug." She paused. "Of course, we'd probably cause a brown-out."

Leo found it amazing that the girl was so calm and composed while her father was missing and probably in mortal danger. Of course, Susie was having the opposite reaction to the situation. She was sitting on Cole's lap, sniffling and clutching her Good Luck Bear. Her eyes were fixed on her sister and there was a small flame of hope there. It was as if she was convinced that her big sister would fix everything and make it better.

"There's an extension cord in the zord bay," Hayley told her. "Will that work?"

Mary Anne nodded. "Perfect." The teen stood up and disappeared into the zord bay.

"So we're back to waiting?" Wes muttered.

"Looks like it," Eric said back.

"It'd almost be a good idea to send some more people to the hospital," Hayley said. "I mean that cyborg did say that she was going to get everyone. Ashley's still really weak and the more people there, the better."

"Doesn't she have her morpher?" Eric asked.

"Yes," Hayley responded. "But it won't help her strength for long."

Eric clasped Cole's shoulder. "Let's go, kid," he said and the pair of them were out of the lab moments later.

* * *

Tommy's head was pounding as he woke up. He blinked several times and tried to take in his surroundings. He was in some kind of cell—stone walls and iron bars like in so many medieval movies. From the light coming in the window, he would have said that it was still early morning. Out of instinct, he glanced at his wrist to make sure his morpher or at least the silver bracelet was in place. There was nothing. A jolt of fear and panic went straight to his stomach. He was morpher-less. He did a quick check. He had also been stripped of his watch, belt and shoelaces. It was like someone was trying to ensure that he didn't harm himself or someone else. He glanced over and saw that the others were in the cell with him. Well, not everyone, just all of the Dino Thunder males. The same things had been taken from them.

Billy was the only other one alert. He was sitting with his back against the stone wall, his glasses askew on his face.

"Where are we?" Tommy asked, his throat protesting against the speech.

"I would gather Mesogog's fortress," Billy replied.

Tommy dragged himself into a sitting position. "Any ideas?" he asked.

Billy shrugged, a mournful expression on his face. "I've tried to use my powers to get the morphers back, but something is blocking me. I can't get beyond anything in this cell."

He felt his heart sink. If Billy's telekinesis couldn't get them what they needed to get out here, then he seriously doubted that any of the other powers would help. He thought briefly of Jason, who could still tap into his powers although the Power Coins had been destroyed. He said as much to Billy.

"I've tried that too," he replied. "Our power source is much more concentrated and, in order to morph, we need the power source present." How Billy could be so composed and calm in the middle of what seemed like a crisis was beyond him.

"Great," Tommy said. "So we're stuck here until Mesogog decides to destroy us!"

Billy cracked a small smile. "The trick is not to let him destroy us."

"And how the hell do you propose we do that?" he replied sarcastically.

"Patience is a virtue," Billy said and then shushed him. "Let me think. You blathering on and being dramatic is interrupting my thoughts."

Tommy glared at him, but fell silent. Billy's words had not been harsh or accusatory, just factual as if stating something obvious. Billy closed his eyes and appeared to be deep in thought.

"Is Mesogog going to go after the others?" he asked quietly.

Billy's blue-gray eyes snapped open, his expression fearful. "I hadn't thought of that," the genius replied. "I guess the others would be a threat to him since they can morph." He paused. "If he gets rid of all of us then he can get at the gem."

"Not if someone locks down the lab."

The genius gave him an appraising look. "Then we had better hope that someone thinks to lock down the lab."

* * *

Andros smiled wearily at Ashley. Carter had called him that morning to say that some of Mesogog's goons had captured all eight of the Dino Thunder rangers. They didn't have a game plan at all or any leads that might help them. All Carter had said was to make sure that he and Ashley were wearing their morphers and to be ready for a fight. He looked at Ashley—she had just had a baby two days ago and there was no way she was going to be able to fight. They were fairly certain that Mesogog was going to come after them next.

He gently smoothed back Ashley's hair and went over to the crib that baby Karone was in. She was sleeping peacefully, unaware of what was going on around her. Her downy soft white-blonde hair was tousled from sleep and she sucked on her little thumb. It never ceased to fill him with amazement to watch his children. How could two people create something so pure and innocent? Homemade miracles… that had been how his mother referred to himself and Karone when they were little. Then Karone had been kidnapped. They were so young when that happened and his parents had been beside themselves with grief. He steeled his resolve. That was never going to happen to any of his children.

"Andros?"

He moved quickly to the bed to Ashley. "What's up?" he asked her gently, sitting on the edge of the bed and wrapping an arm around her.

"Have you heard from the others?"

He knew exactly what she was talking about—had heard anything from the other red rangers or from Tommy. "It doesn't look good," he said softly. "All of the current rangers have been captured."

Ashley looked stunned, as if such a possibility had never seemed reasonable. He knew how she felt. It almost was as if rangers just were not captured. Oh, there had been times when one or two of them were captured, but the others always figured out where they were soon enough and came to their rescue. "How?" she asked softly.

"I don't know," he replied. "All Carter said was that Mesogog was targeting all of us next. All of us who were helping Tommy."

She reached out towards the crib and Andros went over to the baby. He gently lifted the tiny girl out of the crib and settled her into Ashley's arms.

"Hopefully, Hayley can find an invisi-portal so that we can get the rangers out and won't have to worry about this anymore."

"I wouldn't be so sure about!"

They both turned so see a smartly dressed woman standing in the doorway of the room. Andros frowned. He had never seen her before in his life and she vaguely resembled some kind of professional. Who was she and what was she doing here?

"Who are you?" he asked her.

She gave an unpleasant smile and stepped into the room. There was slight glow of green light and the woman made the transformation from a Type A personality businesswoman to a menacing cyborg in seconds. He felt stunned. This woman had to be associated with Mesogog. He instinctively shielded Ashley and baby Karone, while making sure that his astro-morpher was in place. If he had to morph and destroy this woman to protect his family, he would.

"Don't be ridiculous," the cyborg said. "I'm not here to attack you." She paused and smiled her evil smile. "Not yet at any rate. I'm here to make a bargain with the two of you."

"What kind of bargain?" Andros asked warily.

The thing craned her neck to get a glimpse of Ashley and Karone. Her smile was really starting to unnerve him. "The baby," she said simply and then looked back to Andros. "The baby in exchange for your life and hers."

"What?" Numb disbelief coursed through his body. This woman wanted to take their child away from them. Flashes of Karone's initial disappearance danced before his eyes and he wanted to faint. She wanted their child to share the same fate as his sister. "No!" he said fiercely.

"Then you can join your friends," she shrugged. "And we will take the baby by force and get what we want anyways."

"Why do you want her?" Ashley asked, a quiet kind of desperation in her voice.

The woman gave her a bored look. "Experiments of course. My master needs a child to see if the dinosaur mutation will take in infancy." She paused. "Perhaps we can transform the humans rather than destroy them. Either way, it's likely that neither of you will be around to see it. I'll give you an hour to decide. And don't try to hide either. We can find both of you and the baby." With a crack of green lightening, the things disappeared from the room.

Andros and Ashley stared at each other in horror. Not only was Mesogog targeting them, now he wanted their child as well. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Thanks to everyone who has reviewed recently-- I was relieved and flattered that most people liked the last chapter. It was time to catch a breath and allow some long silenced voices to speak (Jason... TJ...) As per usual, reviews from all are welcome. :) --EK


	16. Strength of the Soul

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Sixteen: Strength of the Soul**

There were footsteps outside the room. For a fleeting moment, Andros thought that it was that cyborg coming back sooner than she had said. But his fears were alleviated the moment the door opened and Cole and Eric walked into the room. He noticed that Eric was openly wearing his morpher. 'As are we all,' he thought dryly to himself.

"Morning!" Eric said with forced cheerfulness. "We're here to add to the guard stationed around our fair maiden."

Cole gave Eric a look that clearly said he thought Eric had been sniffing glue. Andros felt a smile crack his face. He looked back to Ashley and baby Karone. Something had to be done about this. He was not going to let any reptile freak have his child. These dinosaur enthusiasts were forgetting one key thing about the Power Rangers—rangers were willing to die for one another, for their families and for each other's families. If they thought they were getting Karone without a fight, then they were seriously mistaken.

"What's wrong?" Cole asked them. "You guys look like you've seen a ghost."

"Or the Stay-Puff Marshmallow Man," Eric added flippantly. Cole punched his upper arm and Eric gave him a look that clearly asked, 'what?'

"Actually, your second guess was probably closer," Andros replied.

All humor immediately left the face of Eric. "What happened?" the Quantum Ranger asked with a note of urgency in his voice. Andros wondered if Eric told jokes and made fun of things to cope with his own anxiety and fear.

He quickly relayed what had happened between them and the cyborg and, more importantly, what the cyborg had wanted. Eric and Cole both had stunned looks on their faces, as if neither had imagined that the bad guys were going to go so far as to come after their families and friends in addition to the other rangers. Cole especially looked torn between pressing Andros for more details or going straight to his cell phone and warning everyone who was remotely close to him.

Eric cleared his throat. "Damn," he muttered.

Cole was biting his lower lip and looking slightly like a lost child.

"How are they tracking us?"

All three of them turned around to hear Ashley's soft question. "I would assume by our power sources," Andros replied. "I mean that is how we track each other."

"Does someone not have a power source?" she continued.

Andros thought for a moment, but Cole was the one who spoke. "I don't." He paused. "We gave our powers completely back to Princess Shayla once Master Org and Toxica and that bunch were defeated. We can't even tap into our powers anymore."

Ashley was looking at Cole like he was a messenger from God. "Is anyone else here in that same situation?" she asked.

Cole shook his head. "No."

"Then they can't track you?" Eric asked him.

"Or with much difficulty," Andros added. "I'm under the impression that Mesogog's technology is much the same as ours. We cannot track people without power sources, so it would stand to reason that Mesogog cannot track you."

He glanced to Ashley and suddenly realized what she was thinking. If Cole could not be tracked by Mesogog, then he would be harder to find. If they gave Karone to Cole and the pair went into hiding, it would delay moment when Mesogog found them and the baby. It would keep the baby safer longer. And if Cole got far enough away, then the baby might be taken completely out of harm's way. The only question was, would Cole be willing to do it?

Ashley was holding the baby out to Cole. "Take her," she was saying. "Take her and get as far away from here as you can!"

A pained look crossed Cole's face. "I don't know anything about taking care of a baby," he was protesting. "What if she gets sick or something?"

Andros shook his head. "She's got the genes and blood from KO 35 in her. It's highly unlikely that anything you get will be transferred to her. For some reason, KO 35 humans are more resilient to the things that affect Earth humans."

"Brian never got any of the normal baby bugs when he was little," Ashley expounded on that. "There is little reason for Karone to get them too." She paused. "Please Cole. It's the only way to keep her away from Mesogog."

Cole sighed. "I guess so." He paused. "But where would I go?"

"Away from here," Eric said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

Ashley gently kissed Karone's forehead and whispered something to the baby. She then handed her to Andros. He looked at his daughter's tiny face. He could hardly believe that he was going to give her to a young man who knew nothing about children. But it was the only way, the only way to protect her. He gently kissed. "Bye Karone," he whispered. "Be good for Cole. I hope we'll see you soon." The words sounded inadequate, but it was all he could think of. He gently handed the baby to Cole. She didn't make a fuss, just continued to sleep as she settled herself into Cole's arms.

"You better get going," Eric told Cole.

Andros handed Cole the keys to his car. "There's a car seat and carrier in there along with diapers and formula and stuff." He shrugged. "It all got brought along just in case. You'll need it."

Cole looked terrified. Andros couldn't blame him. Being asked to run for it with a two-day old baby was enough to scare any of them. Andros felt a heavy burden settle over him. He had never thought he would have to hand one of his children to another man and see him take her away. He swallowed the lump in the back of his throat. He didn't want to do this, but it was the only way. He wanted his daughter to live, to see the things that all girls got—school dances, Barbie dolls…. He looked to Ashley. The tears were streaming down his wife's face.

"I'll try to take good care of her," Cole whispered.

Andros knew the only reason he had added the qualifier was because he was unsure of his own ability. Cole would take care of her to the best of his ability. "Just go," Andros said hoarsely, not trusting his own emotions.

The Wild Force ranger glanced to each of them and then turned with the precious burden out of the room, disappearing into the sterile white hallway. For the first time ever, Andros thought Eric looked scared. And they all were. This battle was going too far.

* * *

There was a familiar crack and sounds of shuffling upstairs. Carter looked up at the ceiling. The Tyranno-drones were in Tommy's house. He then glanced quickly to Hayley, Mary Anne and Susie. TJ had been sitting on the steps leading up to the house and jumped up as if someone had shocked him. A fierce pounding came on the trapdoor leading to the lab.

"Get them in the vault!" Jason hissed indicating Hayley, the Cranston girls and Kendrix.

"No way!" Kendrix protested. "I can fight!"

"No!" Leo countered, giving her a look that clearly indicated that the pair of them had something they had not yet divulged to the group. Carter looked quickly back and forth from each one of the couple and it dawned on him. Kendrix was pregnant. And she had been morphed and fighting earlier this morning?

"Are you pregnant?" he asked her, cutting to the chase.

Kendrix gave him a wide-eyed look. "How did you-"

"I have two children," he cut her off. "I know the signs." He looked to Leo and saw the desperation in his eyes. The last thing the Red Galaxy ranger wanted was for his wife to be fighting while she was pregnant.

"You're not fighting if you're pregnant," Jason said with an air of finality. In Tommy's absence, Jason, for reasons of seniority in regards to experience, had become the leader of the group left in the lab.

Hayley just shook her head, picking up Susie with one arm from where she had been curled in one of the captain's chairs and grabbing Mary Anne's wrist with the other and hurrying them into the vault. The pounding on the trapdoor got louder and sounds of tearing wood and plaster could be heard. Carter's heart pounded wildly in his chest.

"Kendrix, please!" Leo cried.

The Pink Galaxy ranger gave him a pained look and hurried to the vault, just as Hayley locked down the vault from the inside. The Tyranno-drones could not get into there if they tried. The only thing that would make them come out was food.

Jason looked up at the pounding. "You guys ready?" he asked. They all replied in the affirmative. Carter was even more aware of the face that his heart was beating an unstrained, irregular rhythm. "It's morphin' time!" Jason called. "Tyrannosaurus!"

"Shift into Turbo!" TJ followed.

"Go galactic!"

"Lightspeed rescue!"

"Time for Time Force!"

Five former red rangers appeared morphed. Carter pulled his blaster from his belt and aimed it, ready to take out at least the first wave of Tyranno-drones. He glanced down the line of rangers and saw weapons ready paired with defensive stances. A final crunching sound came from above and the first line of reptile creatures came bumbling down the stairs to the lab.

Carter aimed and fired. One of the drones went down. He felt a sense of fleeting victory, there were more of them coming. He heard a distant call of 'Quasar launcher!' and then a blast of red light throwing several of the drones back against the stairs and impeding the progress of the ones that were coming. He fired again. Then the flood gates broke loose.

Tryanno-drones flooded down the stairs in numbers that no one could imagine. Several blasts came from several different weapons, but it did no good in stopping the creatures. They swarmed over them and soon everyone was being held by the creatures. A female cyborg came down the stairs with an unpleasant grin on her face.

"Hold them there," she said to the drones. "I want to ask them a few questions." She strode purposely in front of them and then stopped. "Where is the other one?"

Carter felt a sense of confusion settle over him. What other one? Surely she hadn't gone to the hospital already and attacked the rangers there? Who was she talking about? It could be anyone—Eric, Cole, Andros, Ashley… even Kendrix or Hayley. He hoped to God that these reptile lovers had not found out about Mary Anne and Susie.

"What other one?" Leo asked, struggling against the drones that held him.

"You know which one I'm talking about!" the thing snapped, before pulling out a sword and using the blunt end of it to jab Leo in the side. He went down to his knees, gasping for breath. The blow also caused him to power down, revealing several bruises and cuts.

"No we don't," Jason countered.

"You are hiding him!" the thing shrieked. "I want to know where he is!"

Carter stared at her. Who was she talking about? "Who are you talking about?" Wes yelled, his voice sounding desperate.

"The one who can't morph!"

She was talking about Cole. Carter was sure of it. He was the only male ranger here who no longer had the ability to morph. And none of them knew where Cole was. He had left for the hospital with Eric. Who knows if they made it there or it something untoward had happened on the way? Maybe they had gone with Andros and Ashley out of Reefside? Whatever the case, none of them were going to know where he was now. He couldn't be tracked.

"We don't know!" he spoke up.

"Where did he go?" the creature screeched. She advanced on him with the sword held high. "You know where he went! Tell me!"

He gave her an even stare. "No."

She let out an unearthly howl and struck him between the shoulders with the sword. He gritted his teeth, blocking out any noise, and let gravity pull him to the ground. He felt himself power down at the blow and lay prone on the ground. In the background, behind the roaring in his ears, he could hear someone yell 'no!' and another voice call 'Carter!'

"Let's get them back to the island," the cyborg was telling the drones. "They'll change their tune after some time in the dungeon." He felt himself hauled painfully to his feet and then there was a crack of green lightening as the world went black.

* * *

Eric was out in the lobby getting a cup of coffee to keep him awake after the fairly sleepless night when he saw a green crack of lightening out of the corner of his eye. He dropped the partially filled cup of coffee hearing a slight thud and sounds of spilling liquid as he raced down the corridor to Ashley's room. Andros was still sitting on the bed with her.

"We've got trouble," Eric said.

Andros jumped up and placed a quick kiss on Ashley's forehead. "Lock the door once we leave," he told her quickly. He then followed Eric out into the hallway, slamming the door shut behind him.

"What is going on here?" a nurse demanded, running in at the loud noise. She then caught sight of the approaching Tyranno-drones and fled down the hallway.

Eric exchanged a glance with Andros. They needed to morph.

"Let's rocket!"

"Quantum power!"

The two of them appeared morphed and launched into a defensive stance just as the first drones swarmed onto them. Perhaps that cyborg had been right—all of them would join the Dino Thunder rangers in captivity. He briefly wondered where they were, what they were doing, if they had any plans for escaping, but that thought soon left him. He quickly lashed out at the first drone and it went down. But it was much the same as the battle with the Tyranno-drones this morning. For every one that went down, at least two more came up to take his place. In the background, Eric could hear screams of nurses, doctors and patients and soon the security officers arrived at the scene, leaving quickly.

All too soon, the battle was over and the drones were holding both he and Andros down. The cyborg from this morning, who had most probably been the one to threaten Andros and Ashley came to the front of the reptile-creatures. She was smiling her unpleasant smile.

"So?" she said in the direction of Andros. "Have you given any thought to my… offer?"

Andros growled at her. "No," he said through clenched teeth. "You will not have my daughter for whatever reason."

"Too bad," she said. "You will have to share the fate of your friends." She glanced to the door to Ashley's room. "We'll come for the females later," she told the drones.

"Leave her alone!" Andros yelled.

The cyborg gave him a bored look. "I'll leave her if you tell me where to find the baby." She paused and waved her hand as if brushing something away. "Don't bother to lie to me and say that the baby is in there with its mother. You gave it to someone to hide. Just tell me who has the baby and your little wife will live. Of course, if you don't tell us, we can find the baby anyways." She shrugged. "Either way, it's your loss."

Eric just stared at her. He had been accused of being heartless in his life and of not caring about people, but how could this woman just collect an innocent baby as if it were something she would pick up that the grocery store? He might be willing to fight, but he drew the line at women and children and he despised people who hurt women and children. And this creature was slowly making her way onto the top of his hit list.

"You will not get my daughter," Andros repeated.

"Pity."

She signaled to the drones and they found themselves being held tighter by the creatures. A green flash of lightening came and soon there were standing in a predominantly stone room that was nowhere they had ever imagined they would be.

* * *

"I can't do this!"

Cole gripped the steering wheel of the Kia so hard that his knuckles had turned white. Karone was asleep in the car seat in the back and, so far, had not caused any trouble at all. In fact, she was the best baby he had ever come across in his life. Perhaps it was just because she had Andros and Ashley for parents. They were good people and probably even better parents. It seemed like any child of theirs would automatically be good. Then again… all of the children of Power Rangers seemed to be like good kids. Maybe it was fate. Maybe all the kids were just genetically prone to being really good. He didn't know. It didn't look like he was going to have any kids any time soon.

Alyssa was going to break up with him and he knew it. He supposed that at the end of every relationship, one thought about what might have been if it had lasted longer. One thought of potential marriage, of children that might have been… even vacations or moments that were never shared because something caused the relationship to end. They cared about each other, he knew that, but it didn't seem like enough to carry a full-fledged relationship on.

Freeway traffic was stopped. He glanced in the back seat to make sure that Karone was all right—she was still sleeping peacefully. Friday afternoon rush hour was not the time to try to get out of town. He hoped that he could remain hidden long enough—or that Mesogog would not connect Andros' car with him. He fumbled in his pocket for his cell phone and hit the speed dial button for Alyssa's apartment.

The phone rang four times and the answering machine came on. He sighed inwardly. He had been hoping to talk to her directly. She didn't have a cell phone nowadays. "Hey, this is Alyssa," came the recorded message. "I'm not in right now, so leave a message and I'll get back to you as soon as possible."

The machine beeped, indicating he could start talking.

"Hey," he said into the machine. "It's Cole. You'll probably get this well after the fact, but I just want you to know that whatever happens in the next few days, I love you. I always have and I always will. I don't know what's going to happen to me or to the others here. I hope I'll see you again, but whatever happens with our relationship, just…" he trailed off, not knowing how to end what he had just told her. "I love you," he whispered and disconnected the call.

Traffic slowly began to creep forward again. Now he remembered why he quit driving in the first place—it had nothing to do with pollution. He didn't like fighting crowds of other cars like right now. He steered the car off the first exit outside of Reefside. They probably had bought themselves a few hours while the drones were scouring the city looking for them. He could take some back roads for a while before finding another freeway. He just hoped that he didn't get pulled over by a cop—his driver's license had expired a while ago and he hadn't bothered to renew it.

* * *

"Have you found the one without a morpher yet?"

Elsa shuddered at the acid in Mesogog's voice. She hated telling him that they had failed to find him and they had failed to get the baby that he had wanted for experiments on converting human DNA. He wanted a baby because he had theorized that a baby would be more likely to adapt to the mutation rather than reject it. That baby had been convenient.

"No, my Lord," she replied. "But, we have retrieved all of the other rangers on schedule and are leaving in a few moments to get the rest of the females."

"Good." He paused. "We must find him. The baby is not as important. Babies can be found anywhere. If he escapes and gets help, then that could be the end of our dream. You know what to do if that happens?"

She nodded, knowing that it meant destroying all of the rangers in captivity and then their island fortress. It would be easy to destroy the rangers on their island, once they had been briefed in regards to the… rules.

"Now, go," Mesogog hissed.

She turned on her heel and stepped out into the hallway where the squad of Tryanno-drones were waiting for their signal to move out. "You know who our next target is," she said to them. "The three females you have studied." She paused. "Let's move out."

With a flash of green lightening, they were gone. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Thanks for all the reviews guys! :) I was going to do some reviewer responses for this chapter, but lately several things have attacked me at once. (Updating my Who fan fiction site, school work and a million papers on pointless subjects that need to be written coupled with pointless books that need to be read. And this is Academia at its finest?) I'll try to do reviewer responses with the next update (which should be some time this weekend.) Until then, I appreciate all the feedback and support, along with the interesting ideas. Keep it coming! --EK


	17. Don't Say I'm Too Young

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Seventeen: Don't Say I'm Too Young**

"I'm getting fifteen life signals from Mesogog's island. They're in some kind of holding chamber and none of them have their morphers."

Mary Anne Cranston swung around in the captain's chair and faced Hayley, Kendrix and her younger sister. Hayley nodded at the girl. She must be under enormous stress with the fact that her father was gone, but she wasn't showing any of it. Her cool, analytical mind was taking over the situation. Hayley admired the girl, but thought that she needed to have some fun every once in a while like all the other fourteen year olds. She made a mental note to talk to Billy about that if any of them made it out of this alive.

"Is there anything we can do?" Kendrix asked her.

Mary Anne shook her head. "Nothing until we get the teleportation system working." She paused. "If we get the teleportation system working, I can get the rangers with Dino-Gems out fairly easily. The next part is trickier. The other rangers need their morphers on them in order for me to get a lock on them."

"One thing at a time," Hayley interrupted her. "We need to get the teleportation system up and running. After that, we can worry about the other details." She exchanged a glance with Kendrix. It was rather unnerving putting the future of all those people in the hands of a girl who neither of them knew very well. Oh, Hayley remembered Mary Anne from when she was little, when herself and Tommy and Billy had all been at UCLA together along with Trini. The last time she had seen Mary Anne was at her mother's funeral when the girl was six—too little to understand death. All she had known was that her mother wasn't coming home. It made her wonder how Mary Anne had gone from a bright, bubbly kid, rather like Susie, and turn into a duplicate of her father. Undiluted Billy had probably done it to her…

"Are we safe here?" Kendrix asked Hayley in an undertone.

"I hope so," Hayley replied. "We can lock down the lab if push comes to shove. No one can get in unless someone on the inside lets them in."

"Who would be coming here wanting in the lab besides mutant freaks?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. Any one of the guys could have called other rangers that had been on their team." Hayley felt a sick feeling settle into the pit of her stomach. What had made Mesogog change his focus from the Dino Thunder rangers to the rest of the red rangers and now those of them that were left? "Look," she said to Kendrix. "Mesogog knows about you and me and Ashley. But he doesn't know about Mary Anne and Susie."

The two of them looked to the one girl tinkering with the teleportation system and the other girl sitting on the steps, hugging her Good Luck Bear and sucking her thumb.

"Can we get any idea of what Mesogog wants to do to them?" Mary Anne asked from underneath the desk.

"Perhaps," Hayley replied. "However, we cannot get any direct surveillance into Mesogog's fortress. We can only get surveillance from public areas."

"Can he see us in here?"

"No," Hayley reassured the girl. At least she hoped that he couldn't. Ever since he had managed to put the virus on the zords, she was beginning to give Mesogog credit for accomplishing much more than she had ever thought possible. The virus on the zords also meant that Mesogog, or one of his minions most likely, had gotten into the lab and had been smart enough to leave everything exactly as they found it. The creature had also not attempted to get into the vault, because that would have set off the warning chimes on the bracelets and the vault would have automatically sealed itself. It was impossible for anyone other than a Dino Thunder ranger, herself or perhaps one of the other rangers to get to that gem. It certainly was impossible for Mesogog.

Mary Anne shook her head. "I think you guys should at least bring Miss Ashley here," she suggested. Hayley noticed that she was trying to be polite by addressing her senior with a title, but it was rather hard since no one seemed to know if or what Andros' last name was. It was a well-kept secret by the Red Space Ranger.

Kendrix gave Hayley a look that clearly said 'Why did we think of that in the first place?' Hayley had found over the little bit of time that she had known Kendrix, she really liked her. This was not someone who was going to be easily defeated by Mesogog and she was obviously not happy that the reptile freak had her husband.

Hayley went over to the main computer and brought up the sequence that locked down the lab—the lock down could only be undone from someone on the inside. Mary Anne appeared from underneath the desk and studied the sequence with an intensity that Hayley knew could only be found in Billy or his offspring.

"The lock down sequence?" the teen asked.

She nodded. "I want you to engage it once Kendrix and I leave to go get Ashley. You can monitor the entrances to the house and the lab from here. You'll be able to tell when we get back with Ashley and can let us back in." She paused. Mary Anne looked worried, like she thought that leaving was a bad idea even if she thought someone needed to bring Ashley here. "Look Mesogog doesn't know about you or Susie. I want it to remain that way. If any of the drones come here when we're gone, they'll think that we finally bumped up security on the lab. They won't think someone is down here operating the controls."

Mary Anne nodded slowly. "Just hurry," she said softly.

Hayley felt her heart break for the girl. She was on the brink of womanhood and she didn't know where to turn, whether she should act like a child or an adult. Her father was missing, her mother was dead… It was so much to be on the shoulders of a fourteen year old, a girl who should be out having fun with her friends and not locked in a lab working on a teleportation system.

She and Kendrix quickly left the lab, hearing the grinding gears of the lock down moving into place. She didn't know what would happen to them but Mary Anne and Susie would remain safe from it all.

* * *

Kendrix's mind was churning with thoughts as she and Hayley climbed into Billy's car. She found it slightly amusing that all the cars had become public property of the Power Rangers and anyone used whoever's car they felt like. Hayley had chosen Billy's car on the basis of size. If they were up against a road block of Tyranno-drones, they had a better chance of emerging on the other side of the road block unscathed.

She felt sorry for the two Cranston girls. Obviously, they had the honor and distinction of being the oldest ranger children. Billy did not seem old enough to have a daughter who was fourteen. And no one seemed to know why that was. Leo did not know Billy all that well and hadn't thought to ask in the few days he had known him. She watched as Hayley steered the car onto the main forest road that would lead them to the freeway and onto the hospital.

Well, the worst she could do was ask. "Have you known Billy long?" she asked Hayley.

Hayley shrugged. "I knew him in undergraduate school." She paused. "Me and him and Tommy all went to UCLA together for a few years."

"What happened?"

"We all went our separate ways once we had our bachelor's degrees. I went to MIT and Billy and Tommy stayed at UCLA to enroll in the Master's program." Hayley gave her a sidelong. "But you want to know about Billy."

Kendrix felt her cheeks flush. "I didn't mean to pry. If it's-"

"It's okay," Hayley said quickly, interrupting any forthcoming apologies. "Billy is a very complicated person. I met him when he and Trini had just married and moved into the apartments on the UCLA campus for married students. Obviously after his time as an active ranger was over… Mary Anne was about four then."

"Is Mary Anne not his daughter?" she asked, feeling confused.

"Of course she is!" Hayley said with a slight laugh. "However she was born when he and Trini were sixteen. He didn't know about her and Trini didn't try to tell him about her until he went to Aquitar. He got back from Aquitar to find his girlfriend and daughter living in practical poverty." She shook her head. "It was a long time before any of us knew about this. Trini was eight and a half months pregnant with Susie when she was in a car crash. Susie survived. Trini didn't."

"I'm sorry," Kendrix said softly.

Hayley's eyes held a distant look. "It was hard on all of us. But Billy… he found himself left with a six year old daughter and a newborn baby. He had just finished his bachelor's degree. I think part of the reason Tommy stayed at UCLA was to be there for him. At any rate, he finished his Master's and then took off for Hawaii. None of us had seen him until he showed up in Reefside just recently."

Kendrix shook her head. "How can someone survive so much tragedy and still live a relatively normal existence?"

Hayley raised an eyebrow. "You call Billy's existence normal?"

She felt her eyes go wide, wondering exactly what else Billy had been through. "I was actually referring more to the girls."

The redhead laughed. "Those girls are a piece of work. Only someone with Billy as a father could turn out like they did." She sighed. "But there's a lot more to Billy's past then even I know about. I know he had a rough childhood. Only Tommy really knows all the details. And found out most of them when they were camp counselors together in high school," she ended with a snort.

"Camp counselors?"

"Scary isn't it?"

They both laughed and fell into a comfortable silence. Kendrix remembered hearing all the horror stories about Leo from Mike just before they got married. At the time, she hadn't been sure if Mike had been trying to scare her or just amuse her. Then Leo had dragged out the horror stories on Mike when Mike and Maya got married. The brothers were insane and, if one didn't know them well, one would say they hated each other. However, for those who knew them well, they knew that it was actually a warped kind of affection. She was an only child and had missed out on all the sibling rivalry and such things that came with brothers and sisters. Her hand went to her abdomen. She definitely wanted her baby to have siblings… and that wasn't going to happen if they never got Leo back.

A tight knot of nervousness settled in her stomach. She could remember plenty of times when she and Leo had been active rangers when she worried about him and prayed that he wouldn't get hurt. But this was different… there had never been a time when she was away from him when fighting and didn't know if he was dead or alive. When they had help the Lightspeed Rescue rangers, he had tried to sneak off Mirnoi without the others knowing. That had worked well. They all followed him anyways and when they got back to Mirinoi, Leo had to endure tongue lashings from her and Mike. At least when he went on the red ranger mission to the moon, she had been secure with the fact that there were many other rangers around and it was unlikely that he would get seriously hurt.

Leo… how many times had she accused him of being overprotective and ridiculous? Now she wanted him here to be as ridiculous as he wanted. For a moment, she considered contacting Mike and Maya on Mirinoi and telling them everything, but that would only make them worry and probably cause Mike to commandeer Maya's Jet Jammer and come to Earth to find out what was going on.

'Recruiting the rest of the rangers who still have their powers would have a good thought about a week ago,' she thought. 'Now there's no time to. And I'm not entirely sure that they would be any help anyways.'

The Reefside Hospital came into view. Hayley pulled the Explorer into a vacant parking space and they both jumped out of the car, checking first to make sure that no Tyranno-drones were about in the parking lot. They needed to get Ashley and get back to the lab as soon as possible.

* * *

Ashley felt like throwing up. Cole had left with Karone early that morning and, from the noises out in the hallway, she assumed that Andros and Eric had been captured by Mesogog. Even though she had just had a baby two days ago, she was dressed and ready to go, her morpher in place on her wrist. She didn't know how much good she would be in a fight, but with her husband captured and her newborn gone to God only knows where, she wanted to fight, to help as much as she could until fatigue and pain gave way. Morphing would regain her strength, but not for long. She felt like the world was moving around her and she was powerless to stop anything that was happening.

She limped over to the window of her room. From there, she was afforded a lovely view of the front parking lot of the hospital and the major freeway that ran next to it. A forest green Explorer pulled into the lot and her heart froze. It was the exact same kind of car that Billy drove, but he couldn't be driving it. He was with the others who Mesogog had captured. Who was driving the car? But then again, there could be dozens of the same cars. How could she be sure that Billy or someone related to Billy was driving it?

Two women got out of the car—a redhead and a blonde. If that was not Hayley and Kendrix then she didn't know who it was. In fact, she was not even sure that she had known that Kendrix was here…

Going as quickly as she could in her weakened condition, she moved out of her room and down the hallway towards the elevators. She pushed the down arrow and waited impatiently for the doors to open, giving her a way out of here, a way to help.

"Miss! Where are you going?"

She turned and saw a nurse running towards her. She didn't want to explain about Karone which was the inevitable next question. The doors to the elevator slid open and she hauled herself inside them, smiling ironically as the doors slid shut in the nurse's face. She was a Power Ranger. She did not belong in a hospital where she would be babied and coddled while the others were fighting. She belonged with the others. She had to help them for Andros' and Karone's sakes.

The elevator opened on the ground floor to the lobby just as Kendrix and Hayley burst through the doors.

"Ashley!" they said in unison and hurried over to her.

She smiled at Kendrix and the two women exchanged a brief embrace. "No one told me you were here," she said. She looked at them. "Let's get out of here."

"Will you be all right until we get to the lab?" Kendrix asked her.

Ashley nodded. "I just want out of here, so I can be some place where I might be able to help."

"The first thing we need is to get back to the lab, so we can make sure that we don't have the same fate as the others," Hayley added.

The three of them headed out across the parking lot and to Billy's car. Ashley wasn't going to ask how Hayley happened to have his keys, but she suspected that many things like keys and wallets probably got left around the house. From the tense atmosphere in the car, she suspected that the other red rangers were gone as well.

"Who's left?" she asked as she slid into the back seat of the Explorer.

"Just us," Kendrix replied, snapping her seatbelt in place.

"And Mary Anne and Susie," Hayley added.

"And Cole?"

Kendrix shook her head. "We don't know where Cole is," She paused. "Although we don't think he's with the captured."

Ashley said a small prayer of thanks. That meant that Cole was getting away from Reefside with Karone. The last thing she wanted to hear was that Cole had been captured right along with the others.

"Why do you ask?" Hayley questioned, looking at her through the rearview mirror as she put the car into drive and sped out of the parking lot.

"Some cyborg wanted Karone," she said simply. "Since Mesogog can't track Cole because he doesn't have a morpher, Andros and I gave him Karone and he's supposed to be getting her far away from Reefside."

Kendrix sighed. "Let's hope he succeeds."

The car suddenly came to a stop, throwing all of them forward in its impact. "What the hell?" Hayley yelled, stomping on the gas pedal. The engine of the car revved but it didn't go forward. Ashley twisted around in her seat and saw that three Tryanno-drones were holding up the back bumper, preventing the car from moving.

A loud thud came from the roof of the car and the whole car began to shake. "They've found us!" Kendrix cried as more Tryanno-drones materialized outside the car with a flash of green light.

Ashley quickly unbuckled her seatbelt. Her and Kendrix needed to morph. They might actually have a chance if they could morph. She held up her morpher. "Let's rocket!" The familiar sensation of morphing came over her and she appeared morphed.

Kendrix met her gaze and followed suit. "Go galactic!" She appeared morphed as the Pink Galaxy Ranger. She pulled out her Quasar Saber. "Let's take care of these guys," she said, releasing her seatbelt and throwing open the passenger side door. Ashley called out her Star Slinger and threw open the back door, moving into the throng of Tryanno-drones that had surrounded the car.

She shot at two of the drones and had two direct hits. The car engine suddenly revved again, momentarily startling her. She jumped out of the way as Hayley put the car in reverse and took out the drones that had been holding the car. A blast of pink light caught her attention as Kendrix used her Quasar Saber to take out more of the drones.

However, it was a battle they were destined to lose. The more drones they took out, the more drones appeared. Ashley had a sinking feeling that this is what had happened to everyone else who had ultimately been captured. Desperate, she fired and took out the drone closest to her. The drones then swarmed over her, preventing her from moving. She struggled, but her strength was giving out. The drones dragged Kendrix over to her as more drones surrounded the car and bodily dragged Hayley from the driver's seat.

A crack of green light produced the cyborg that had threatened her earlier. The woman smiled unpleasantly. "It is such a pity that you must share the fate of your husband," the thing said in a mocking tone. "And since none of you are going to tell me where to find the one without a morpher and the baby, it is pointless for me to ask." She nodded to the Tyranno-drones. "Take them back to the fortress and put them with the other females."

With a crack of green light, Ashley suddenly saw exactly what had happened to the others.

* * *

Mary Anne frowned as she connected the wires in the teleportation system. It had been a long time since Hayley and Kendrix left to get Ashley—too long. She glanced down at her watch. It was almost supper time. Hayley had not said what they needed to do if they needed food. She supposed that there was some food down here. Susie was dozing in the captain's chair, still holding her Good Luck Bear tight. Her little sister was too young to fully comprehend what was going on here and Mary Anne had to admit that she didn't understand it fully herself. All she knew was what her father had told her and what she had gleaned from the others.

"Mary Anne?"

She looked up from the system at her sister. "What's up Susie?"

"When are Miss Hayley and Miss Kendrix going to get back?" the little girl asked, rubbing her eyes. "I thought they'd be back soon."

"It may have taken them longer than they thought," Mary Anne replied. "Sometimes grown-ups run into obstacles they hadn't seen." She paused. "We might have to stay here overnight," she added, just so Susie didn't get inflated hopes.

Susie nodded and closed her eyes again. Mary Anne waited until she was still and then tapped at the controls. She ran a life signal scan. Her heart fell when she saw that Mesogog was holding eighteen in his fortress. A lump formed at the back of her throat and she fought the tears that were burning in her eyes. She was afraid, but she had to put on a front for Susie. It would be almost impossible for her to get the teleportation system running without her father or Hayley, but she would try. She would not go down in history as the kid who let all the Power Rangers die because she didn't know her technology.

Resolve steeled, she picked up her tools and kept working on the system. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Thanks for all the reviews guys! I've got a bit of spare time-- my African American Lit prof let us out early-- so I shall do some reviewer responses for people who reviewed chapter 16. Before that, a bit of housekeeping-- there have been some minor changes to chapter 15 in terms of what the Space Rangers say when they morph. But once more, thanks for all the reviews!

**cmar**- I have to agree with you on Elsa and the Tyranno-drones, but the reason they succeed is sheer numbers. If they have enough Tyranno-drones hanging around and attacking at once, the good guys will be a little overwhelmed (as they are.) Thanks for your kind words though. I'm glad the story is remaining interesting.

**Funky In Fishnet**- You're right, the Wind Ninja Academy would be a safe place for Cole to go, but since WF never teamed up with NS, I'm fairly certain that he doesn't know where it is. Also, in this story, he doesn't know much about the NS rangers since they aren't part of the distress signal. Although that would be a good place for him to go. Thanks for the nice review-- it was definitely something to think about.

**Jason Barnett**- You're review struck me as rather ironic (in regards to my own views), I have never viewed the villains as incompetent. Quite the reverse actually, I've always viewed them as more than competent (even Divatox had moments where she was completely competent like when she took out the Turbo Rangers' Command Center.) I just see them as making stupid mistakes which makes them seem incompetent. The idea here is what would happen if they stopped making dumb mistakes for a time and the good guys starting making some. But your review was very interesting-- I enjoyed it!

**jenny**- Right now, I can't tell you that. But all the couples and issues revolving around that will be resolved at the end, either for better or worse. As I keep on telling people, patience is a virtue. :)

**jim hawking jr**- Thanks for the kind words!

**kakwat**- No, I can safely tell you that Cole isn't going to be the Purple Dino Thunder Ranger. If he were, then the gem would have already bonded with him and he'd be in the same boat as the others. But it is a good guess! Right now, Cole is trying to get as far away from Reefside as he can with baby Karone. He could call the other rangers that are there, but all of them have been captured. He's kind of between a rock and a hard place. But thanks for the review!

**Ranger Lover**- I'm glad you like it. Cole, Andros and Ashley certainly have a lot on their respective plates right now. Poor guys. But I'm glad you're liking the action and the subplots.

**sayinjinj7**- You shall see what happens to Cole. (I'm such a horrible person for leaving cliffhangers like that! But it is all in the interest of suspense for the sake of the story.) I'm glad you're liking that particular subplot.

**silver-sugar**- Depends on what your definition of a happy ending is... but this story is far from over, so you shall see in time. :)

**SilverRider**- I hope this satisfies what you want for now at any rate! :) Updates will be coming regularly.

**the-power-of-love**- Glad you like it! I'm endeavoring to make the updates regular. :)

**white time ranger**- Thanks for the review! I'm glad the story is still interesting after all this time. :)

**Zeo Star 5**- Thanks for your information on what the Space Rangers say to morph. I have to say that I had never really sat down and thought about it. But once I got your review, I looked it up and you are right! Thanks for your insight!


	18. Just A Dream Away

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Eighteen: Just A Dream Away**

The sun was setting, lighting the sky with streaks of gold and pink. It looked so peaceful, so far away from the fear and violence that had begun to rule his world since last night. It was strange to think that tomorrow would make it a week since they had arrived at Tommy's house with the intent of helping him with the zords and gems and going home. There was so much left unanswered. The bad feelings that some of them had gotten, Leo's vision of the island…

Cole sighed. It was getting late and he was no longer sure where he was. He had dug around in Andros' glove compartment and found a small map of the United States. Sadly, it hadn't been detailed enough to tell him where he was. He just hoped that it was far away from Reefside. He had been driving for hours, pulling over only once to feed Karone and change her diaper. She had been unusually quiet, he thought. He hoped to God that she didn't have some kind of illness that he was unable to identify. Then again, didn't newborn babies sleep for something ridiculous like twenty hours a day? He didn't know.

They needed to find some place to stay for the night that was not the car. Although, he didn't imagine that either of them would find the car that uncomfortable, it seemed like a better idea to find a cheap motel somewhere. Then they could both at least bathe thoroughly and he could get a good inventory of what was in the car, maybe even do some wash. However, he was not sure how much money he had and Andros obviously was not one to leave money in his car. He could find one of those spiffy rest stops along the interstate and they could spend the night there for tonight and work on finding a motel tomorrow. That seemed like the best idea.

The sun was almost completely beyond the horizon as he finally found a rest stop and pulled the car in. He thought about what it would be like to keep driving into the horizon so that the sun would never go down. It could be done… but this was not a leisure trip that he was taking with his girlfriend or friends. He should have felt fear and he should have felt panic, but all he felt was a slow numbing feeling and pure exhaustion. The day had been an emotional ride to pits he didn't know existed.

"Garg," he said to himself as he shut off the engine and leaned his head heavily against the headrest. There were no coherent words to describe what he felt. And the scary thing was that Tyranno-drones could appear at any moment and apprehend both of them. He reached slowly to unbuckle his seatbelt and twisted around to see Karone. She was still sleeping. At least one of them was unaware as to what was going on.

He got out of the car and rounded it to Karone's door, opening it. He quickly changed her diaper and deposited all of the soiled diapers in a trash can outside. Deciding that was the most undesirable task associated with babies, he fed and burped her, wishing that Ashley had been able to at least give him a crash course in taking care of a baby. He was winging it on his limited experience and what he had gleaned from Dana in the time he spent with the Graysons. A smile floated over his lips as he remembered the birthday parties for Cory and Heather he had been invited to and the times he had been conned into babysitting—although that was mostly with Alyssa's help. But that did not make him an expert on babies… in fact, it had probably made him worse because he had grown to believe that children were born with the skills they had at about a year old.

When he had decided that Karone had burped up about all she was going to (and he was probably doing this longer than he needed), he settled her into the carrier (which looked more comfortable than the car seat to his mind). Just as he climbed back into the driver's seat and made sure all the doors were locked, his cell phone rang. Fumbling for a moment, he pulled it out of his pocket and pushed the correct buttons to answer the call.

"Hello?" he asked, forgetting to look at the caller ID to see who it was.

"Cole?" a familiar voice asked. Alyssa… he felt his heart soar. "Where are you?" she asked in a voice that clearly sounded frightened and panicked.

He glanced at a sign. "Somewhere off I-5 North," he said slowly.

"What?" she said, incredulous. "I thought you were in Reefside."

"Er-" he trailed off. "I was in Reefside. It's a long story." He paused, realizing that his slightly ridiculous situation was hard to explain. "Did you get my message?" he asked, changing the subject completely.

She was silent for a moment. "Yes," she said softly. "Taylor didn't think you meant it."

"What?"

"But I think I know you a little better than Taylor does…" Her voice was soft and tremulous, a voice he had come to love hearing over the phone or in person.

"And?" he prompted.

"I-"

His cell phone began to crackle and static came over the line. "Hello?" he said frantically. "Alyssa?" He took his phone away from his ear and looked at it. The battery had gone dead. He hadn't charged it since he'd been in Reefside, because he had left his charger at home in his haste to pack and be ready when Carter arrived. He bit his lip, fighting the urge to swear. Andros did not have the same kind of phone as he did, that he knew. There was no way he could call anyone now—he had just lost their hope of contacting the others. There were always pay phones…

Digging into his pocket, he came out with a handful of change. It would be enough for a few pay phone calls. He went to his back pocket to check his wallet to make sure that he didn't have a random calling card or something. However, when he pulled out his wallet, something else came with it. A credit card…

He stared at it intensely. The name on it was 'Wesley A. Collins.' Wes' credit card… What was he doing with Wes' credit card in his pocket? Then it dawned on him. Eric must have put it there when he was leaving the hospital with Karone and he had been in such a hurry that he hadn't noticed. He also vaguely remembered Eric saying that Wes had a credit card especially for red ranger emergencies and any of them could use it if they needed to… he wasn't sure if that were true, but it was worth a shot.

"We are definitely staying in a hotel tomorrow night," he told Karone. "And I am getting a cell phone charger the first place we find." Then he could finish the conversation with Alyssa without the hassle of a pay phone.

Double-checking to make sure the doors were locked and that Karone was sleeping peacefully, he slumped down in the driver's seat and fell into an uneasy sleep interrupted by nightmarish dreams of Tyranno-drones.

* * *

It was dark outside. Carter could ascertain that much as he slowly sat up, his head throbbing painfully. The stone floor was cold and the entire cell stank of mildew, dampness and just plain misuse. Almost on instinct, he glanced down at his wrist to make sure his morpher was still in place. He shouldn't have been surprised that it was gone, but a jolt of panic hit him in the stomach anyways. Glancing around, he saw that he was in some kind of dungeon. Two large cells with thick iron bars were side by side, separated only by more of the bars. The other red rangers were in the cell with him—Jason, TJ, Andros, Leo, Wes and Eric. The male Dino Thunder rangers were in the cell next to them. The female Dino Thunder rangers were nowhere to be seen. He felt a brief spark of hope. Maybe Hayley and Kendrix and Ashley had not been captured…

"Morning," Leo said dryly as he painfully pushed himself into a sitting position. The floor was slick with slime and his head throbbed a faster beat as he moved.

"Oh God," Carter moaned, holding his head with one hand, trying to block out the pain. "What happened?" he asked.

"You've been out since we got here," Leo replied. "The Tyranno-drones teleported us here and then threw us in the cell, after taking our morphers. We've haven't seen hide nor hair them since they brought in Eric and Andros."

Leo was sitting against the wall. Carter scooted towards the wall and propped himself up against it. It was stone just like the floor and felt much the same—cold and slimy. If he didn't have his morpher, then he assumed that no one else did. But then again, Jason didn't need a morpher to morph anymore. He said as much to Leo.

"Tried it," Jason's mournful voice came from across the cell. "There's some kind of block around this place preventing me from connecting with my powers."

Carter's back suddenly felt warm and itchy when it shouldn't because of the cold, dirty stone wall. He painfully reached around and when he brought his fingers back, they were sticky with his own blood.

"He's bleeding again," Leo said to Andros who had been sitting cross-legged in front of them. Andros said nothing as he and Leo tore off what appeared to be more pieces of their flannel shirts and began mopping up the cut on his back. Carter could not tell how bad it was, only that it itched and was beginning to twinge with pain. Combined with his roaring headache, he felt like he was going to explode.

"It's almost deep enough to require stitches," Andros said absently as he tied two long strips of flannel together and tied it over one shoulder and under the other to try and stop the flow of blood.

"Great," Carter snapped.

Leo and Andros didn't say anything. They knew what he was feeling. They were trapped in the fortress of some crazed half-human, half-reptile with no idea what he was ultimately going to do to them. That was topped with the fact that their wives and children (including future children in Leo's case) were God only knows where. He knew that he was better off than Leo and Andros because his wife and children were far away. Still, he didn't want to think that a week ago was going to be the last time he ever saw them.

It was cold in the cell. Most anyone who would have had a jacket on them when they morphed had had it taken from them. Flimsy things that would not help against the cold, such as flannel shirts, had been left. It was then that he realized other things had been taken from them besides morphers and jackets—belts, shoelaces, jewelry (including watches and earrings), glasses (in Billy's case) and anything in those categories. It was like the Tyranno-drones had been trying to prevent any daring escapes or suicide attempts.

"Is there anyone left?" he asked softly, trying not to lose that small flame of hope.

Andros shook his head. "We don't know. No one has seen any of the girls including Kira and Kim."

"We don't know who's left except for Cole," Leo finished.

"So we're just waiting for Mesogog to do something to us?"

"For now," came Billy's voice from the next cell. "I assume that they want us alive in the morning, because they didn't take all of our shoelaces and belts and things until after you guys had been brought in. The question is what Mesogog has planned."

Carter glanced into the next cell. Billy was sitting against the wall with the look of some kind of sage on his face. The resident genius also appeared to be in deep thought. Trent was curled up on the floor in front of him with a defeated look over his sleeping face. Ethan was next to Billy on the wall with his head slumped onto Billy's shoulder. That made Carter crack a small smile since he could see the similarities between the former Blue Ranger and the current Blue Ranger. Tommy was lying on the floor with Conner using his stomach as a pillow. Adam had fallen asleep sitting up next to them. In a way, it looked pathetic. In another way, it looked hopeful, showing that even in defeat they would stick together until the bitter end.

A grating sound came from the large door to the room that their cells were in. All heads turned to look at the sound and those that had been sleeping snapped quickly to attention. A group of Tyranno-drones came in followed by the female cyborg that had accosted all of them earlier. A drone lumbered over to the cell containing the Dino Thunder rangers and opened the door. Conner happened to be closest to the door and the thing grabbed at him. He lunged away, kicking at the drone in an effort to remain un-captured.

What happened next was a blur to Carter. With Conner's resistance, the other Dino Thunder rangers began fighting off the drones that were invading their cell until the dust cleared and the cyborg was standing over Conner. Conner was lying on his back. She had her foot on his chest and was holding a sword over his heart.

"By all means," she said in her menacing tone. "Continue to resist. He will be destroyed just like the rest of you."

The Dino Thunder rangers slowly dropped their guard. Carter was reminded of the Borg from Star Trek. 'Resistance is futile, you will be assimilated.' That seemed to be this cyborg's motto concerning them. She motioned to the drones who immediately surged onto the now calm Dino Thunder rangers. Each one of them had a peculiar bracelet slapped onto their wrists where they would normally have had their morpher. The drones left the cell and locked it up.

Carter knew the next thing that was coming, but somehow his pain-fogged mind was not prepared for the drones to jerk him upward and slap a similar bracelet on his wrist. He feebly tugged at it, but it was to no avail. The things were not going to come off unless they had an exceptionally sharp object around.

"Now listen to me well," the cyborg female said. Her words dripped with venom. The drones closed and locked their cell. "Tomorrow morning you will be let out of this cell and put into specific areas of this island. Your bracelets are rigged to explode, so if you put one foot out of line you will lose your arm and probably something more. This practice is commonly known as a battle royale. You will all destroy each other. The winner gets to remain alive. However, if you refuse to fight, you will all find yourselves destroyed." She paused and smiled, letting the effect of her words sink in. "I will explain the other pertinent details tomorrow morning. Enjoy the rest of your night," she ended sarcastically.

Carter stared at Andros and Leo in horror. There was no way they were going to destroy each other, was there?

* * *

Their cell was little, almost too little for five women to stay in comfortably. And it was dreadfully cold. The stones were wet with a substance that Ashley did not even want to think about what it might be. When her and Kendrix and Hayley had been brought in, Kira and Kim had already been in the cell. Her and Kendrix had their morphers taken away and were immediately stripped of belts, shoelaces, jewelry and, in Kendrix's case, glasses. They had been here ever since without seeing any sign of Mesogog or his minions.

And they felt like they had exhausted all means of escape. There was nothing in the cell they could pick the huge padlock with. None of them, who normally could, could morph without their morphers. Ashley was cold, exhausted, in pain and more miserable than she had ever been in a long time. She didn't know where her husband or her baby was. They had not seen any of the male rangers since getting here. She shivered. The five of them were huddled together for as much warmth as could be had.

"Are you doing all right, Ashley?" Hayley asked.

"As well as can be expected," she replied, clenching her teeth together to keep them from chattering.

"I hate waiting," Kira grumbled.

"Don't we all?" Hayley countered. "I want to know what that mutant freak has in mind."

They fell silent, each with her own thoughts. There were a million ways Mesogog could dispose of them and a million reasons that he was keeping them in this cell. Ashley had realized a long time ago as a ranger that waiting was the worst thing that they were ever expected to do.

"Ew, gross," Kimberly groaned. "There's a slug in here."

That got a collective shudder. None of them would exactly describe their interests as bending towards nature and places where one might encounter slugs. Ashley understood the sentiment. They had already been through so much in the past twenty-four hours that something as little as a slug was enough to flip all of them out. She just hoped that no one crashed down into hysterics before the night was over.

There was a loud grating noise that rattled her very bones as the large door to the room holding their cell scraped open. The cyborg woman and the Tyranno-drones surged into the one. One drone opened their cell and, before anyone could move, they were held down by the large number of drones and had strange bracelets slapped on their wrists where their morphers would have been.

"Don't even try to resist," the thing said sneeringly. "One of your fair-haired boys tried that and it almost got him killed."

The drones slammed the cell door shut and the padlock clicked shut. The cyborg strode over to them with an unpleasant smile on her face.

"Now listen to me," she said in a tone of a teacher handling delinquent students. "Tomorrow morning you will be released to a certain area on this island. The term I believe is battle royale. You and your lovely males will destroy each other and the winner will be allowed to keep his or her life. If you do anything you shouldn't, the bracelet will explode and you will lose your arm, maybe something more, I don't quite know. I'll explain the rest of the rules tomorrow morning. All of you will participate." She paused. "Except you," she ended pointing at Kendrix.

"What?" Kendrix cried as the drones opened their cell again and dragged her away. Soon the drones had relocked the cell and Kendrix was dragged away down the corridor and out of sight.

"Where are you taking her?" Hayley yelled.

"Leave her alone!" Kira screamed after the departing drones.

The cyborg stared at the musingly for a moment. "Well, since we cannot find your baby," she said with a sneer for Ashley, "we'll just have to use a replacement."

"Oh God," Hayley said faintly, slumping down against the bars and to the floor. The cyborg and the entourage of drones left them alone once more.

"What?" Ashley asked Hayley. "What's going on?" Her confusion was mirrored on the faces of Kimberly and Kira.

"Kendrix…" Hayley said softly. "I forgot that you three don't know this…"

"Hayley, what?" Kira demanded.

"Kendrix is pregnant."

* * *

Everything was going so well. Seventeen rangers and one little tech girl to go into the battle royale at sunrise… Lord Mesogog would be pleased, Elsa thought. She was even pleased with herself. They could start a serious search for the one without a morpher once all the others were securely released onto the island. There was no way that they could escape from that island alive unless she or Mesogog allowed it. Yes… everything was going so well.

"Elsa…" came Mesogog's familiar hiss.

"My Lord," she said with a smile. "Everything has been done to your specifications."

"Except for one thing." He folded his hands behind his back and slowly ambled into the control room, staring at the various specimens they used for the Geno-Randomizer.

"One thing?" she asked, swallowing hard. She already knew that he was not happy over the one without a morpher who they could not find.

"The one without a morpher… where is he?"

"My lord," Elsa started, forcing a smile onto her face. "It is but a matter of time before we track him down and he joins the others."

"Are the others yielding information about him?"

Elsa took a deep breath. "No," she said. The word was anticlimactic. Mesogog whirled around, his eyes blazing.

"And why not? Have you struck bargains with them? They are silly, trusting fools. If you offer freedom, they will talk. You do not have to ever grant it to them."

Elsa seriously doubted that that was going to work with this bunch. If it had just been the original four, well, five Dino Thunder rangers then she might have thought it would be successful. The stupid trusting jock would have believed enough to tell her. But he was now being influenced by many other, more experienced rangers who knew that bargaining with the enemy was not something to be trusted.

"I want him brought to me," Mesogog hissed. "It is unlikely that he is far from Reefside. I trust that it will not be a problem to bring him in."

"Of course not, my lord," Elsa said through clenched teeth and a false smile.

"Go," the reptile-man commanded.

Rolling her eyes, she stormed out into the hallway. She didn't have the faintest idea where to search for the renegade. Even the thought of the imminent battle royale didn't lift her spirits. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Wow! Everyone certainly has some interesting ideas about where certain subplots are going-- I've actually enjoyed reading them quite a bit and seeing how everyone else would take the story! Thanks for all the reviews! Below are a couple of notes on my use of certain terms (because there either were or I feel there will be questions.) --EK

_A note on my use of the term 'cyborg'_: Merriam-Webster's Dictionary defines a cyborg as a 'bionic human.' (Bionic is defined as 'having normal biological capability or performance enhanced by or as if by electronic or electromechanical devices.') And in White Thunder Part 1, Elsa calls Zeltrax a cyborg. By process of association, I have assumed that Elsa is also a cyborg, albeit a bit more human than Zeltrax. The term cyborg is also a general term that the others, who don't know her name is Elsa, use rather than constantly referring to her as the 'crazy woman who is not quite human who keeps attacking and threatening us.'

_A note on my use of the term 'battle royale'_: Merriam-Webster's Dictionary defines 'battle royale' as 'a fight participated in by more than two combatants; _esp_: one in which the last man in the ring or on his feet in declared the winner.' This is a loose definition. My definition comes from the Japanese movie 'Battle Royale' and the way in which the battle royale in the story is set up is similar to what happens in the movie. (Multiple summaries and reviews can be found on-line about the movie if someone is unfamiliar with it.)


	19. Waiting For A Friend

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Nineteen: Waiting For A Friend**

Mary Anne blinked a couple times. The lab came into focus and the almost completed teleportation grid. She had fallen asleep with her head on the desk and had to painfully peel her cheek away from where it had cemented itself. Glancing at the clock on the computer, it read six-thirty in the morning. Her heart constricted with panic for a moment. It had been one night. Mesogog could have destroyed all of the rangers in that time. But she let her panic go when she saw that the computer was still picking up eighteen strong life signals. Good. Hopefully that would give her enough time to finish the teleportation system and get the Dino Thunder rangers back. Then her father could realign the grid for the others.

It seemed like a good plan. Maybe somewhere in there her and Susie could leave the lab and find some breakfast. She wished she had one of the Dino Thunder rangers present so she could test the system on one of them before trying it cold-turkey on all of them. It seemed like so much could go wrong with it.

And yet… she had taken the schematics off of her father's computer and followed his plans to the letter. All that was left was some superfluous wiring (more of a safety net than anything else) and to reprogram the computer for the changes. Then, hopefully, the system would be up and running and life in Reefside would be good again. She glanced over to Susie who was still asleep in the captain's chair. This had to work. She was not even going to try to envision life without her father.

She quickly picked up the electrical tape and her pliers. The wiring went smoothly enough and soon her fingers were flying over the keyboard, putting in the correct commands. Once the initial reprogramming was done, she shut down the computer, so it could restart and fully register the changes. Her stomach rumbled painfully. She knew that Hayley had told her to stay in the lab with the lock down, but Mesogog didn't know about her and Susie? Right? It couldn't hurt if they went up to the kitchen to get some cereal or something. Her stomach twisted itself into a nervous knot. Well… it was the only way. She could fight… kind of…

Checking to make sure that Susie was still dead asleep, she lifted the lock down on the lab manually. Surprisingly, the grinding did not wake up Susie. She nimbly went up the stairs and into the deserted first floor of the house. It had a deserted air even though it had only been empty since last night. There didn't appear to be any Tyranno-drones about or anything else unsavory. She ran into the kitchen and threw open the cupboards, searching for cereal. She found a box of Lucky Charms, two bowls and spoons and a half-gallon of milk. As she was walking through the living room with the food, there was a loud knock on the door followed by the doorbell ringing. Mary Anne felt her heart jump into her throat and she nearly dropped what she had in her arms.

Who was at the door of Tommy's house? She put the milk, cereal and dishes down in the front hall and crept towards the door. She peered out of the peephole. There was a woman standing on the front porch. She had dark red-brown hair that was pulled back into a severe ponytail and was wearing jeans and a light pink blouse. Mary Anne was fairly certain that she was not associated with Mesogog. But who was she? Tommy's girlfriend? The woman started to look impatient and rang the doorbell again.

"Wes?" the woman called through the thick wood of the door.

Mary Anne, already too scared for her own good and wanting some help, quickly decided that the woman was a former ranger, although she had no proof. She opened the front door.

The woman smiled. "Hey," she said, as though she had expected someone like Mary Anne to open the door. "Is Wes here?" She looked uneasy at Mary Anne's silence. "Wesley Collins? I was told he would be here."

"He's not here anymore," Mary Anne said slowly.

"Where is he?" the woman asked.

"It's a long story." The teen looked closely at her. There was a morpher on her wrist. "Look, who are you?"

"Jen Scotts," she replied, looking worried. "Who are you? What is going on here?"

Mary Anne bit her lip. "I think you should come with me down to the lab. It will be safer and I can explain what I know."

The woman shook her head, but followed Mary Anne down the stairs and into the lab. She quickly put the lock down back on the lab and turned to face the woman. Jen had a concerned look on her face. "First things first, who are you?" she asked Mary Anne.

"I'm Mary Anne Cranston," she replied. "That's my younger sister, Susie." She paused, thinking of the correct way to phrase the next bit of information. "Our father is the green Dino Thunder ranger."

Jen looked like she was going to faint. "There are more rangers?" she asked faintly.

"There's been a lot of rangers."

The woman sighed. "I guess you should know this. I was the Pink Time Force Ranger. I went back to the year 3000 when our mission was over. I came back to this year illicitly to see Wes."

Mary Anne nodded, too numbed to be shocked that the woman was from the future. And she was a former ranger. She could help them get the others out of the island. The only problem was that she didn't have a Dino-Gem bonded with her. She didn't know how to program the teleportation grid for power sources outside of the gems. "All the former red rangers came here because Tommy asked them to," the teen started slowly. "Something happened and Mesogog now has them and all of the current rangers on some kind of island. I don't know what he wants with them or what he's going to do. He even got Hayley, their tech girl. Me and Susie are the only ones left."

"Mesogog is the bad guy?" Jen asked.

Mary Anne nodded. "I just finished the teleportation system. The only problem is that I can't put you on the island because you don't have a Dino-Gem."

"Dino-Gem?"

"The power source for this team."

Jen nodded.

"Why don't you see if the purple gem wants her?"

Both of them whipped around to see Susie struggling to sit up properly. "You were awake?" Mary Anne asked, incredulously.

The little girl shrugged. "How else do you think I figured out that Daddy was Santa?"

"There's another gem?" Jen asked as Mary Anne hurried to the vault and put in the code that her father had told her only days ago.

"Yeah," Mary Anne called as she opened the briefcase that held the purple gem and took it out to the main lab where Jen and Susie were. "It never bonded with anyone. Tommy's keeping it in the vault until its owner comes."

Jen picked up the purple gem and it flashed a brighter shade of purple in her hand. She looked up at the girls. Mary Anne smiled. She was fairly certain that it had just bonded with her.

* * *

The sun peeked through the iron bars, slowly lighting up the cell and providing a little warmth. Leo blinked against it, his side aching. The events of the previous night came back to him in a terrible dance. Mesogog was going to make them destroy one another. He swallowed, even though his mouth was dry as the Sahara. Why would he think that the rangers would be willing destroy one another? Perhaps he thought if they got desperate enough to… he shook his head. He would die before killing another ranger. And if Mesogog wanted to destroy all of them through these bracelets, then he was welcome to. Leo imagined that if the bracelet exploded then most of them would not die of the initial wound, but of the shock that would follow. It was not a pretty way to go, but it was the only option.

Andros, who had been curled in a ball on the floor, shook himself awake. Leo tried to smile and be reassuring, but failed. "What are we going to do?" he whispered.

The Red Space Ranger shook his head. "I don't know." He paused. "But I do know that we need to stick together now even more than before… Mesogog wants to tear us apart. We need to stay close and make it clear that we aren't going to harm anyone."

Leo leaned back against the wall. He wished that Mike were here. His older brother would know what to do. Or at least it seemed like that. When they were little, Mike had been the caretaker. He always had a decent plan and waited to form the plan. Leo was much more likely to just take off and not think things through. The only problem was that all of them had had the entire night to think of something and everyone came up empty-handed.

"You all right?" Andros asked, interrupting his train of thought.

"I just hope Kendrix escaped all of this," he said softly. "I don't think you ever found out, but Kendrix is pregnant."

Andros cracked a tired smile. "Congratulations. I was wondering when it was going to happen to you." Andros' eyes looked sad and far away. Leo couldn't blame him.

"Are you all right?" It was his turn to ask Andros.

He shrugged. "I just wish I knew where they were."

Leo nodded, knowing what he felt. His tired blue eyes glanced around the cell. Everything about them this morning looked tired and defeated, from the makeshift bandage around Carter's chest to the fact that Jason, who could sleep anywhere, had not closed his eyes all night. Andros' hair was down (the ponytail holder had disappeared) and stringy with dirt and the dampness of the cell. How long had they been waiting? Too long.

"Good morning."

His heart fell into his stomach as he saw that the female cyborg was back and then he saw who the drones behind her were holding. Ashley… Kira… Kim… Hayley… For a brief moment, he felt hopeful. Had Kendrix escaped the drones?

Everyone was alert and looking at the cyborg. "Listen up," she said as if she were a drill sergeant and they were all in the army. "You are going out into the island today. This building is off limits. The island is marked off with wires. If you cross out of your section before you're supposed to, then it's curtains. You will have until sundown tomorrow to get rid of all the others in your section." She paused. "And don't even think about trying to escape. This island has a force field around it preventing you from getting anything or anywhere."

She motioned to the drones and in a moment the reptile creatures were dragging them out of the cell and out of the building. Leo still wondered where all of the drones had come from. Did Mesogog purposely create more of the things just to make sure that they could subdue them? It seemed likely and unlikely at the same time. With the incident with Conner last night still freshly burned in his mind and the hope that Kendrix had escaped and was working on a way to help, he allowed the drones to drag him to a part of the island and throw him into a tree. Ashley and Adam were thrown into that particular area with him.

The drones left and the distinct buzz of electricity began indicating that the wires and bracelets had been activated. Ashley slumped down onto the ground, tears running down her face. Leo did not think it was a coincidence that she and Andros had been separated.

"They can't make us kill each other!" she said between sobs. Leo shook his head. Adam sighed and exchanged a glance with him.

"No, they can't," Adam agreed with her. "But they're going to try."

"We'll all die here," Ashley cried.

Leo shook his head again. "Not necessarily. There're others that Mesogog doesn't have. Kendrix, Billy's girls…"

"No," Ashley interrupted. "That creature took Kendrix somewhere. We don't know where she was taking her, but she wanted her because she was pregnant."

Leo felt a roaring in his ears as all the hope he had amassed last night and that morning came down, crashing and burning. Black spots danced in front of his eyes. That damned mutant freak had his wife and wanted his child? His breath came in ragged gasps. This was not happening… this was not happening…

"Leo!" Adam said in a worried tone. "Are you all right?"

Leo looked up at him. "I don't care how or when, but someday that fucking freak is going to pay for this! I will kill him!"

* * *

It was midmorning and Cole was tired already. He supposed that the initial adrenaline rush had worn off and pure exhaustion had taken its place. He was confused, he was tired—both emotionally and physically—and he had never felt like this before in his life. It was hard to describe, a mixture of fear and awesome responsibility. If he failed, then he felt like the entire universe would come crashing in around him.

He thought of Wes' credit card. He could pull off the interstate and look for a motel. They were still in southern California on a fairly busy road. There had to be a motel of some kind around this place. He took the nearest exit off the interstate. Glancing at the gas gauge, he knew he had better find a gas station first thing when they started moving again. Soon enough, he came upon a Motel 6.

"Well, Karone," he said to the sleeping baby. "It's better than nothing."

He pulled the car into a parking space in front of the main desk, got out and rounded the car to the baby. When he opened the back door, the wind around him kicked up a little. The breeze was cool, but not unpleasant. That small wind said many things. Above all, it seemed to tell him that help was on its way.

"Thank you," he whispered to the breeze.

He shifted Karone from the car seat to the carrier and picked up one of the diaper bags that had been filled with stuff. The back of the car also had a duffel bag, which Cole had found out earlier had some of Andros' clothing in it. All of it needed to be washed, but there was time for that. He slung the duffel bag and diaper bag over one arm, picked up the carrier in the other and walked into the lobby.

"Need a room, hon?" the woman behind the desk asked.

"That would be nice," he replied, setting down the bags and putting the carrier on the counter.

"She's precious!" the woman gushed over Karone. "Your daughter is so pretty!"

Cole almost said that she wasn't his daughter, but stopped himself. The woman bustled around getting room keys set up and talking about the amount it would cost him to stay there for the night. He handed her Wes' credit card and silently said a prayer of thanks when she didn't ask him for some ID.

"Have a good stay, Mr. Collins," she said as he left the lobby with the room key and the armfuls of stuff he had walked in with. Great, first Karone was assumed to be his daughter and now he was pretending to be Wes. Things just didn't get any more convoluted than this.

The room was right next to the lobby and Cole walked straight there, depositing everything on the bed. Karone was awake and looking feebly at him.

"How do like this?" he asked her. "You get to pretend to be my daughter and I'm pretending to be Wes, so in some strange way, I guess that makes you Wes' daughter."

The baby just stared at him.

He shook his head at her. "You need a better name that Karone. That's a name that you have to grow into." He sat down on the bed next to the carrier and gently stroked her tiny hand with one finger. "See, if I had named you, I would have given you a name like 'Samantha' or 'Amanda'. You can grow up with that name, because there're nicknames and things. But you had to get a name that won't make sense until you're older." He paused. "You need a nickname." The baby obviously wasn't interested, but he pressed on. "How about 'Kaye'? I like that. It suits you."

The baby had closed her eyes again. Cole smiled to himself. He was glad that she was such a good baby, because he didn't know what he would have done otherwise. Since she had fallen asleep, Cole figured he could too. He fell onto the other bed fully clothed and fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

* * *

Jennifer Scotts, commonly called Jen by her friends, had never thought that so many astounding things could happen to her in one day. This topped the day that Alex proposed to her, then died (or she thought he had died) and then she came to this time for the first jaunt. Here she was again. She had wanted to see Wes. The endless days and weeks of being back in 3000 had left her drained. She didn't want Alex anymore. She wanted to be with Wes and knew that she would not be complete until she was. Even if he didn't want her anymore, it was still what she needed to hear. Besides, she rather liked this time as opposed to her own time. It had grown on her in the time they had spent here.

And here she was, faced with two girls, ages fourteen and eight, who were telling her that this Dino-Gem had bonded with her and that she needed to go to a heavily wired island to save eighteen people.

She had just morphed into the Purple Dino Thunder Ranger. The outfit was reminiscent of her Time Force uniform, but obviously for the current team. She imagined that the pink and yellow outfits would look much the same if she saw them. Mary Anne was telling her about the different arsenal available to her when morphed—a litany of things including a small laser gun and sword (she had missed the technical terms) and a Cephalo-Lance. The teen then launched into an explanation about her zord, apparently the Cephalo-Zord, but it was out of commission for an undetermined amount of time from the latest battle.

Taking off her helmet, she looked at Mary Anne and then Susie. The former was giving her an expectant look and the latter was hugging a Care Bear and sucking her thumb. The only thing that stood out in her mind was that Wes (and all the others) were on an island.

"So what were you going to do before I showed up?" she asked.

"I was going to teleport all of the rangers with gems off the island."

Jen thought for a moment. There were a million things that Mesogog could have done to them on that island. And since they had no surveillance of the island, there was no way of telling what had been done. If they just randomly teleported them back, there was a large chance that they would be brainwashed or destroyed or… something…

"I'm not sure that's a good idea right now," she said slowly. "I'll get onto the island and see what has happened." She paused. "You'll have communication with me?"

Mary Anne nodded. "Yeah. The blocks on the island don't prevent things coming from the outside. I could communicate with the others as well if they had their morphers on them. I don't think that Mesogog thinks anyone else is left."

Jen almost snorted. "He's wrong. I'll let you know what's been done to them. Keep the communication lines with me open. I'll let you know when to teleport the rangers with gems."

"What if something happens to you?"

Jen didn't know why, but in the hour since she arrived on Tommy's doorstep (after being given the royal runaround from Mr. Collins who was not entirely sure where his son had gone), she felt a strange affection for the two girls. She was itching to ask about their parents—why they looked so Asian, yet Caucasian at the same time. But she suppressed the question. It was probably one that the girls got often.

"Power down," she said and her uniform disappeared, replaced by her civilian clothing. She almost wished she had a purple blouse on rather than a pink one, but it was a superfluous matter in the long run.

"You should take some stuff with you," Mary Anne said suddenly, jumping up and grabbing up a Care Bears' backpack. "Susie has some crackers in here." She picked up a first aide kit from under the desk and shoved it in as well along with a flashlight and a blanket. It was obviously Susie's backpack, but the little girl just watched as her sister handed over the backpack. "If you need to get back here because of an emergency, press this button on your morpher."

Jen looked down and saw that her morpher had become a large silver bracelet with the purple gem in the middle. A small star shaped button was on it.

"You're the only one who can teleport from the morpher. It's not on the others. I have to do them from the computer. Just think about where you need to go and it will take you there." Mary Anne sighed. "Good luck. If you need me to hack into any computer systems to reverse something, then just say the word."

Jen smiled at the girls and then pressed the button on her morpher. In an instant she was surrounded by purple light and deposited in a strange forest. A wire was running into the thick foliage and the place smelt damp. She raised her morpher to her mouth. "I'm in." 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Reinforcements have arrived! Thanks for the reviews guys-- they are the bane of my fan fiction existence. Well, perhaps not that extreme, but it certainly gives me incentive to post the chapters sooner. I have a Halloween story in the works about the red ranger bunch and wanted to post it on Halloween, but it looks like this one won't be posted until after then (and the Halloween story contains spoilers for the end of this), so the Halloween story will be belated. Just a heads up on what is potentially to come! --EK


	20. No Easy Way Out

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Twenty: No Easy Way Out**

Cole jerked himself awake. What had woken him up? It wasn't Kaye—she was still peacefully asleep in the carrier and probably needed her diaper changed, but since she was such a strange baby she wasn't going to cry about it. The sun was sinking over the horizon. He had slept longer than he meant to. Lord… he needed a shower and he needed to wash the clothing that he had with him. His stomach rumbled, reminding him that, while Kaye had the formula to satisfy her, he had not had anything to eat since yesterday.

Well… food would have to wait. Right now he needed to correct the fact that he smelt like a locker room. Bringing the carrier in the bathroom with him, he took a quick shower, letting the warm water wash away the tension of the past day and relax his tense muscles. Wrapping a towel around his waist, he gave the baby a sponge bath and put her in a fresh diaper and clothes. Now what to do about his clothes… He went through Andros' bag and selected the clothing that seemed cleaner than the others. After he dressed, he rounded up all the random amounts of laundry and took the baby (in the carrier) and her diaper sack with the dirty laundry, going in search of a laundry room.

The hotel had a laundry room that reminded him of the ones from the time he had spent at college—the kind that took quarters—and the little machines that had the soap and fabric softener. Once he had all the things he needed, he started the laundry and settled down to feed Kaye and read an old issue of _National Geographic_. Soon enough the clothes were ready to come out of the dryer. Kaye slept while he folded the clothes. He shoved everything back in the duffel bag and, picking up the carrier, went out to the car.

Another car had pulled next to his, Andros', car. He didn't recognize it, but since he had not had a conversation with someone older than three days, he figured it would be worth a glance to see who was checking in. As he put things in the car and shuffled Kaye from one arm to the other, he saw who was checking in. She was a shorter woman with black hair and glasses. She turned around and saw him…

Cole's heart constricted with panic. Shit! It was that cyborg woman in some kind of human disguise. As fast as he could, he shoved the carrier in the car and dived into the driver's seat. For a moment, he fumbled with the keys, but had the car running and backing out of the parking lot, just as a huge blast of energy hit the pavement where the car had been. He slammed the gas pedal to the floor and took off back towards the interstate.

"This can't be happening!" he cried, trying to breathe evenly and hold the carrier still in the passenger seat at the same time. A light drizzle had started over the road, making it hard to see the road.

Suddenly, the car stopped. "What the hell?" Cole yelled, trying the key in the ignition. Had the dumb thing stalled? He really didn't know. A Tyranno-drone leaped onto the hood of the car. Cole made a loud incoherent noise in the back of his throat. Kaye began to cry. Without thinking, he grabbed the two bags from the back seat and the carrier with the baby and dived out of the car, off the interstate and into the grassy, muddy knoll leading to a forest.

He ran. He ran as far away from the car and that drone as he could. All too soon, his legs began to cramp up from exhaustion and the rain, that had once been a light drizzle, was coming down in cold, hard sheets. He grabbed a blanket from the bag and covered the carrier so that Kaye wouldn't get too wet or uncomfortable.

"You can't track him in the rain, you fools!" came a harsh, female voice. "He'll surface somewhere. He can't stay in the woods with that baby. We'll look for him tomorrow."

Cole froze, realizing that they couldn't see him from where he was, slumped behind a huge tree. He looked around the tree and saw them disappear in a flash of green light. Checking his pocket, he knew that he still had his wallet and Wes' credit card. But how were they going to get anywhere before those creatures found them? He didn't know what he was going to do and the very thought frightened him.

* * *

Jen picked her way over the wire and headed into the forest. It didn't seem like Mesogog really cared who got on the island, because he seemed confident enough that no one was going to be able to leave. The woods were quiet, too quiet. Where was everyone? Mary Anne had said that there would be eighteen people on this island. So far, she had not seen any signs of life other than those of small furry creatures and insects.

Several twigs snapped as if someone had stepped on them. She whirled around and immediately her blaster was in her hand. She didn't have time to wonder at it as she aimed it in the direction of the apparent danger. When she saw who it was, she slowly dropped her defense.

"Carter?" she asked, slowly tucking the blaster in her belt and adjusting the backpack before stepping back over the wire to him.

"Jen," he replied with a smile. As quickly as the smile came, it faded. "What are you doing here? How did you get here?"

"It's a long story." She held up her wrist with the silver bracelet and purple gem.

"The purple gem bonded with you?"

"Yeah-"

"Did you find someone? Who are you talking to?" came Mary Anne's voice over the communicator. Jen grinned. Carter stared at the bracelet.

"Yes, Mary Anne," she said into the communicator. "I found Carter. I'm assessing the situation as we speak."

"Cool," Mary Anne replied. "I'm standing by."

"I'm keeping an open communication line with Mary Anne," she explained. "I need to know what's happened to you guys," she continued. "What's the deal?"

Carter held up the wrist with the bracelet. "Mesogog has got some kind of link with these bracelets. If I cross that wire," he indicated the wire that Jen had just been jumping over, "then the bracelet will explode." The Lightspeed Ranger paused. "He wants us to destroy each other. We have until sundown tomorrow to get rid of the others in our section."

Jen rolled her eyes in disgust. "Sick freak," she muttered. "Did you catch that Mary Anne?"

"Uh huh. I'm working on hacking into Mesogog's computer system. Those bracelets have to be centrally linked from somewhere." There was a pause. "I'll see if I can neutralize them."

"Good," Jen replied. Carter had leaned against a tree and was supporting himself. She caught sight of the makeshift bandage around his torso. "What happened to you?"

"A preliminary scuffle with the drones."

"Drones?"

"Reptile freaks that Mesogog can apparently manufacture and send out in huge droves to capture us."

She shook her head. "Sit down," she ordered. "Mary Anne sent me with a first aide kit and some other supplies." He sat down on a nearby tree that had fallen. She set the backpack next to him and began pulling things out. "Take the shirt off," she ordered. Carter peeled his dirty t-shirt off and the makeshift bandage just fell off.

"Nice backpack," he said dryly, as she dabbed at the cut across his back with an alcohol pad. He winced as it stung where the dried blood had mixed with dirt.

"It's not mine," she replied. "It belongs to Susie. I'm borrowing it."

"It matches your gem."

Jen grinned to herself. It was true that the backpack was predominantly lavender and featured a purple Care Bear. It would definitely take some getting used to—thinking of herself as the Purple Dino Thunder Ranger rather than the Pink Time Force Ranger. She pulled out some gauze pads and secured them with medical tape.

"Who else is in this area?" she asked as Carter pulled his shirt back on.

"Wes and Kira," he replied. "Kira is the Yellow Ranger on your team," he added to clarify who this mystery woman was. She had not been briefed as to who was on the island, only that Wes and seventeen others were here.

"Success!" Mary Anne crowed over the line. "Mesogog needs a better firewall in his system, because it was easier to hack into than NASA. All the bracelets have been neutralized and I'm keeping tabs on it in case he tries to reactivate them."

"You hacked into NASA?" Carter asked incredulously.

"Just don't tell my dad," Mary Anne countered.

Jen laughed as Carter rolled his eyes and took the small scissors from the medical kit. He cut at the bracelet until it came off and then kicked it away from him. "If that thing explodes, I don't want to be anywhere near it." He replaced the scissors, stood up and let out a shrill whistle.

"Are you still at the base of the tree, Carter?" a female voice called from what sounded to be high up in the tree.

"Yes!" he called back.

"Okay!" she called down and then yelled, "Wes! Get down here!"

An incoherent reply came from even higher up. The leaves on the tree began to rustle and then a teenage girl, older than Mary Anne but a teenager nonetheless jumped down to the ground. Her jeans and shirt were dirty, but it was obvious that the shirt was yellow. The rustling continued and Wes jumped to the ground. He was equally as dirty as the other two.

"Jen?" he asked, his eyes looking like they were going to pop out of his head.

"Hi Wes," she said with a smile.

"You know her?" the girl in the yellow shirt, presumably Kira, asked.

"Yeah," Wes explained slowly. "She was on my team." He looked down at the silver bracelet on her wrist. He gently picked up her wrist and studied the purple gem in the center.

"Looks like she's on my team now," the girl said. "I'm Kira Ford," she said, holding out a hand. Jen shook her hand with a smile.

"I'm Jen Scotts." She paused. "Your bracelets have been neutralized."

"Good," Kira said. "I was afraid we were going to have to stay in that tree for a long time."

Jen smiled as Wes wrapped his protectively around her waist. She snuggled close to him despite the fact that he was dirty and smelt weird. Suddenly she got a flash of Wes sitting on a bed. The bed appeared to be on a ship somewhere and he was facing two other men. He was telling them that he still cared for her, but she had to go back to her own time. It was akin to him saying that he would love her forever, no matter what time. What was going on? Why could she see all these things? Even still, a warm feeling bubbled up inside her. Perhaps this would be her last trip to the present.

"Jen? You want me to go ahead and get the Dino Thunder Rangers out of there? If my dad is here, then I can get the thing realigned to the other guys. And my dad can probably send the others their morphers."

"Go for it," Jen said into her communicator. "Just leave me in here. I'll see about rounding up everyone left on the island." She paused. "Once you get them there, make sure they all get rid of their bracelets."

"Will do," Mary Anne replied.

* * *

Eric had had just about enough of this entire battle royale idea. In fact, he had had enough of all of these people and this situation. It was just his luck that he had been shoved in a section with Billy and TJ. Well, TJ wasn't so bad, but he was not a fan of Billy and did not exactly cherish the idea of being around him. Perhaps that was what Mesogog was counting on—someone snapping at a pointless grudge. Of course, it would have been nice if Mesogog had given them implements with which to destroy one another.

At the present moment, the three of them were sitting around on a fallen log, no ideas coming to them. Billy was supposed to be smart. Why wasn't he coming up with any ideas on how to get them out of here? He may not like most of these people overmuch, but he'd be damned if he was going to flat out kill any of them.

"There's got to be a way around this," Billy was muttering to himself.

"I don't see how," TJ replied. "We can't leave this area. Your telekinesis doesn't go any further than this island. We can't get our morphers. It seems like everyone who could possibly help us has been captured." He paused, looking defeated. "Tomorrow at sunset all of us are going to lose an arm or worse."

"Thank you, Captain Obvious," Eric said sarcastically.

"Chill out, man," TJ snapped at him. He was normally pretty calm compared to the rest of them and he had a long fuse. Now it appeared that he was at the end of his fuse and wasn't going to tolerate much.

"There has to be." Billy appeared to be in his own world, because he was clearly not listening to the exchange between TJ and Eric. "If only we had some kind of rudimentary tools," the genius continued muttering. "Sharp sticks or something…"

"What is he muttering about?" Eric asked through clenched teeth.

"Damned if I know," TJ replied rolling his eyes.

"Something…"

"Billy." He looked up at Eric. "Shut-up."

When he continued muttering, Eric felt all of his resolve snap. "That's it!" he muttered. "He is fucking dead!" He lunged at Billy. The genius let out a startled yelp as Eric tried to strangle him enough to knock him out. Frustration was coursing through his body. He hated waiting. He hated feeling helpless. And he hated working with others. TJ launched himself on Eric's back and tried to separate them.

"It's not worth it!" TJ was yelling.

And quite suddenly, Billy was gone and Eric was strangling the ground. He and TJ froze right where they were. "Where did he go?" Eric yelled.

TJ shrugged. "Like I know."

Suddenly something hit him square between the eyes. "What the fuck was that?" Something else landed on the ground in front of TJ.

"Your morphers," came Andros' voice.

"Andros?" TJ asked. "How are you in our section?" Andros and Ashley were walking into the clearing. Both of them had their morphers on their wrists.

"Apparently Jen came back to this time," Andros explained. "The purple gem bonded with her and Mary Anne got the teleportation system up so all of the Dino Thunder Rangers with the exception of Jen are off of the island. And she neutralized the bracelets by tapping into Mesogog's computer system."

"Jen?" Eric repeated, strapping his morpher securely to his wrist.

"The one and only," Jen said stepping into the clearing with the rest of the rangers on the island that were not powered by Dino-Gems—Hayley, Jason, Leo, Carter and Wes. Wes had his arm around Jen's waist as if he were considering the possibility of never letting her go. "It took us a while to find you guys," she said.

"Jen?" Eric said again, numb disbelief coursing through his body.

"Stop that," TJ told him. "You sound like a broken record."

"Shut-up!" he snapped at TJ, before turning back to Jen. "What's going on?"

Andros answered. "My telekinesis is stronger than Billy's because I've had mine my entire life. I was able to get through the force fields around the island and get everyone's morphers. I found everyone with Jen's help." He paused. "She's telepathic… Only we couldn't get to Kendrix…" He trailed off.

Eric's gaze automatically snapped to Leo who was holding her morpher. He looked like he was ready to hang himself at that exact moment. Desperation reigned in his features. Eric paused a moment to feel sorry for him before deciding that he needed to attack Andros for hitting him in the head with his own morpher. He had just gotten Andros in a headlock, when Jen screamed, "HEY! CAN WE FOCUS PLEASE?"

"Mary Anne is working right now on tuning the teleportation system in for your various power sources. When she contacts me and tells a certain one of you to morph, you'd better do it if you want to get off of this island at all."

Eric wondered what would happen if Mesogog caught wind of any of this. Or what would happen when he discovered that the bracelets weren't working. How many drones would it ultimately take to finish all of them off? He sank down onto the fallen tree that he had been sitting on earlier. He sincerely hoped that the girl knew what she was doing.

* * *

Wes held out his wrist as Jen carved the bracelet loose with the flimsy pair of scissors that were in the first aide kit. Night had fallen and, with more supplies Jen had gone back to get, they had a fire roaring along with blankets for everyone. Most people were asleep. The pocket knife Tommy had sent broke after the first few bracelets, so they were back to the scissors. TJ and Eric had buried all of the other bracelets in another section.

It was amazing that teleportation was so close to them, yet so far off and elusive. Jen pulled the bracelet the rest of the way off. She chunked it over the wire and into the next section.

"Don't do that," TJ reprimanded, getting up with the flashlight and going after it.

"Sorry," Jen called after him.

A muffled reply came, but it was unintelligible. Wes smiled as Jen shoved the scissors back into the lurid Care Bears backpack and snuggled up against his side. He had missed her so much that it had turned into a dull aching pain that he had grown used to living with. Now that she was here, he remembered what it was like to feel whole again. It had been like his other half had been torn from him and he was wandering the world searching and never finding. Well, she had found him.

He remembered the first time he sent her back to the future along with Trip and Katie and Lucas. He had thought he would die, but it had to be done. He had thought she would go back to Alex and live happily ever after. A fleeting thought had told him that she had only been subbing him for Alex and it wouldn't have worked ever. Then she came back, when the Wild Force rangers needed their help. They had affirmed what they both felt, but in the end, he sent her back to her proper time.

Now she was back and this time it had nothing to do with Time Force or mutant criminals or half-mutant, half-orgs running around time. This time she had come back to him.

"Are you back here for good?" he whispered.

"Of course," she replied. "You don't think I got on a ship illicitly just to stay for a nice vacation, do you?" She paused. "Of course, I should have never gone back that second time. I shouldn't have listened to you."

"Are you saying I don't give good advice?" He tried to sound hurt and failed.

She laughed. God, he had missed her laughter. Well… he had missed just about everything about her. "No… you give good advice. I just should have ignored it."

He rolled his eyes and kissed her temple. "As long as you stay here," he whispered.

"It's very comfortable where I am right now. I plan on staying as long as possible."

He laughed. "I wouldn't get too comfortable. Who knows that that reptile freak is going to come up with next?" She elbowed him in the rib cage. He ignored the unspoken barb. "Will you marry me?"

"Is that even a question?" she replied, yawning. "As soon as all this mess is over, we can elope to Vegas and go on an extended honeymoon somewhere."

"Hawaii?"

"Only if you promise to wear those lurid Hawaiian shirts and shorts everyday."

He just laughed and pressed another kiss to her temple. He wished that this reunion was under some other circumstances, so that he wouldn't have to remain sexually frustrated until this whole ordeal was over. However, it seemed like a small matter. The love of his life was back where she belonged—in his arms. He pulled a blanket over them as his eyes drooped shut. He knew that there was a reptile freak to be dealt with and that he shouldn't feel so confident, but the feeling came over him anyways as he fell asleep. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** If you guys have any questions about the fic or why something in particular was done, then please e-mail me! I don't have the e-mail review alerts turned on (although I should), so I have to come to the site and manually look at the review board. (Hence the reviewer responses at the end of some chapters.) Put like 'question' or something as the subject and I will get back to you. Thanks for all the reviews and the comments! --EK


	21. Battle Stations

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Twenty-One: Battle Stations**

Tommy was not sure what exactly had happened. One minute he had been sitting in his section of the battle royale island with Conner and Jason and the next minute he was sitting on the floor of the lab. Mary Anne had been sitting in one of the captain's chairs looking like someone waiting for the results of an important test. Susie was standing in the other captain's chair, holding Good Luck Bear under one arm with all of her fingers crossed, eyes closed.

"It worked!" Mary Anne crowed. "I was pretty sure I had the thing aligned correctly, but I couldn't know because you guys were all locked up…" She continued babbling on and on incoherently. Tommy was strongly reminded of Billy in his high school days. Back then, the genius had either talked incessantly or not at all when faced with a success.

"Daddy!" Susie screeched. Tommy looked around and realized that all of the Dino Thunder Rangers were standing, sitting or, in Billy's case, lying on the floor of the lab. Billy scrambled to his feet and had both his daughters in his arms in seconds.

"We got them, Jen!" Mary Anne was calling into the microphone on the desk.

"Good," a female voice over the line said. "Get the bracelets off them."

The next few moments had been a blur. Mary Anne had found a pair of wire cutters and had everyone cut off the bracelets (which Tommy discovered she had neutralized by hacking into Mesogog's computer system and deactivating them.) It also made Tommy wonder why Mesogog was so quiet about this. That alone was enough to put him on guard. They only had one functional zord and, at that time, no morphers.

"Welcome to the team, Jen," Billy was saying over the communication line.

"Thanks," came the reply. Mary Anne was rapidly explaining that Jen had come from the year 3000 to see Wes and that the purple gem had bonded with her. Kira was backing up the story. Tommy could not recall ever having met Jen, but he had heard about her from Wes. "I've just run into Andros," she was saying. "He says that with my power and his combined we can find the morphers and send them back to the owners."

"Andros' power?" Billy had asked.

"Claims he's telekinetic," Jen replied.

"How come he never told the rest of us?" Conner yelled.

"No one asked!" Andros said into Jen's communicator.

"If you get the morphers back, then we can start on realigning the teleportation system to include everyone. I'll need people to morph though," Billy told her.

"No problem," Jen affirmed. "How long?"

"At the very least…" Billy paused and expelled a breath. "A couple hours. More like overnight. We'll keep an open communication line with you should anything happen."

"And you should come back to get more supplies," Mary Anne suggested.

That had brought a flash of purple light into the lab and Jen appeared. Or at least, Tommy had no reason to believe that it wasn't Jen. She was wearing a pink blouse and jeans and had on a purple Care Bears' backpack that Tommy knew belonged to Susie. Billy and Mary Anne rounded up all of the supplies they figured she would need for everyone and stuffed it into the backpack and another duffel bag, while Jen got introduced to all of the Dino Thunder Rangers. She went back to the island with the supplies and a few minutes later they were informed that their morphers were on the front lawn because Andros couldn't send them through solid objects.

Right now, it was the next morning. Tommy had fallen asleep sometime in the middle of the night. Billy, on the other hand, hadn't slept. Between putting the teleportation feature onto their morphers and aligning the teleportation system to the other rangers, he was busy. He also had to figure out a way to get Hayley off the island. Someone made a pot of coffee upstairs and he got himself a cup, before heading back to the lab.

Billy was staring at some readings on the screens. He didn't look tired, so much as he looked frustrated. "I don't understand it," he was muttering to himself. "Why does it fall in sync when the power source is natural, but when it's man-made, it won't lock on?"

"Problems?" Tommy asked.

"I can't get the thing to align for the Lightspeed and Time Force morphers." He paused. "It almost didn't want to align for the Turbo and Astro-morphers."

"The others are aligned?"

"Not quite yet. There are so many different power sources." He paused. "They still don't know where Kendrix is. I should be picking up ten life signals—which I am—and nine of them should be showing that they have a power source and can morph. Excluding Jen," he amended.

"So who's showing they don't have a power source besides Hayley?"

"That's the trick—it changes. Mesogog has some kind of shield around the island that it scrambling my readings. I'm having trouble getting a clear lock on anyone."

* * *

"Elsa…" came Mesogog's low hiss. She shuddered involuntarily. Something was amiss and, at this point in time, she had no idea what it was. "Tell me why I'm… upset."

"Forgive me, my lord," she stammered. "I don't know."

"Really?" Mesogog folded his hands behind his back, his tone of voice incredulous. "Why don't you check the readings on that island and then come up with an answer?"

With shaking hands, Elsa went over to the computer and brought up the surveillance screens and readings on the island. "What?" she screeched. "How could eight of them have just gotten off that island? There was no one left!"

"Apparently you did not smoke out their layer well enough. Some of the rodents have escaped your purge."

"But the bracelets should have stopped them! Do they all have one arm now?"

Mesogog sighed. "You really need to learn to check the readings more often. It would be most informative if you want our dream to reign."

She stared at the readings. The bracelets had been deactivated. How? Someone had to have been on the other side tapping into their computer system. It was impossible!

"There is another one in there. This one holds the power of the purple gem."

Elsa gaped at him. The gem they had been going to get once all of the rangers had started exterminating one another had bonded with someone. But how? There had been no one left. She made sure of it. The only one still running free was the one without a morpher and he was far away from Reefside with a dead cell phone. He could not have contacted anyone. She glanced down at the readings. The vault where they had stored all of the morphers had been breeched.

Snarling, she went to the vault and threw it open. All of the morphers were gone. Mesogog was going to kill her! Granted, the Dino-Gem powered morphers would have been no good to them since the gems did not give their power to anyone but their owners, but the other morphers would have been easy to tap into and take their power.

"Send the drones to the island," Mesogog said in a deadly soft voice. "Make sure that none of them escapes that island alive."

"What of the others and the one we're still looking for?"

"Keep the drones searching for the one without a morpher. He will be easy enough to find—he no longer has a car." Mesogog paused and stared at the shelves upon shelves containing specimens for the Geno-Randomizer. "Send a monster or two for the others to deal with. Without their zords, that will keep them quite busy. I don't imagine that ancient zord they dredged up will be much good. While they are busy with the monsters, take care of the ones on the island and see that there are no mistakes."

"How did they get off!" Elsa grumbled.

Mesogog gave her a bored look. "Obviously they had a trump card and we failed to recognize that—a mistake I do not intend for us to repeat when ten of their numbers are on our island in easy reach." He paused. "Go!"

Elsa nodded quickly and headed down the hallway to the drones. At least they still had one of the females in their fortress. She would do well for the dino-gene experiments that Mesogog needed a human baby or fetus for. At least that one would not escape unscathed.

* * *

The alarm chimes sounded in the lab. Conner jerked himself out of his stupor and ran over to the surveillance screens. Billy's fingers were already flying over the keyboard and bringing up the various readings.

"What is it?" Conner asked.

"Monsters," Billy replied. "Two of them… Downtown."

Tommy was there behind them in a moment along with the others. "We need to get down there and stop that monster," he said.

"What if Mesogog makes it grow?" Adam asked. "You might have noticed that we still have no zords, except for the Dragon-Zord and if he makes both them grow the Dragon-Zord is no match for it."

"What choice do we have?" Tommy retorted. Conner could see that the strain was getting to his former teacher and mentor.

"There's always a choice," Kimberly said quietly. The sound of her voice caused any further bickering to die before it could reach more than a thought in everyone's minds. "We have to take the chance that Mesogog could make the monster grow. There aren't enough of us to split us between repairs, the teleportation grid and the monster."

"Okay," Conner spoke up. "We all go to the monsters and Mary Anne can stay here, working on the teleportation grid." He exchanged a grin with the younger teen. She certainly deserved their recognition that she was as good as Hayley and her father in a pinch.

"The red ranger lives up to the legacy," Tommy said. There was approval on his face and it made Conner glow with pride. "Let's go," he said.

Conner almost started to go for the raptor-cycles, but stopped himself just in time. Billy and Mary Anne had put the teleportation grid into their morphers. All they had to do was push the star-shaped button on their bracelets and think about where they wanted to do. Then they would be teleported straight to that spot. Tommy nodded and the eight of them pushed the buttons, flying out of the lab in eight streaks of colored light.

He had never felt anything like this before. It was like every nerve ending in his entire body was on overdrive. The sensation was incredible and over too quickly. His feet landed on the pavement in front of where the two monsters were terrorizing the city. Scared civilians were moving all over the place. Conner exchanged a glance with Tommy.

"Let's do this!" Tommy cried.

In unison, everyone yelled, "Dino Thunder, power up!" and were followed by Trent's cry of "White ranger, dino power!"

The eight of them appeared morphed. Almost as if they were moving as one unit, they called out their weapons and moved in on the monsters. Conner approached the monster nearest to him. It looked like a card game gone wrong. He brandished his Tyranno-staff and swung at the monster. He missed and was kicked from behind, falling on his face.

"Conner!" someone yelled. The next moment, an arrow flew through the air and hit the monster in the shoulder. Conner scrambled to his feet in time to see Kim run towards the monster with her Stego-Ax and hit the thing between the shoulder blades. It screeched in its unnatural voice and swung at Kim. She expertly ducked the thing and came up behind it for another hit. Sparks flew. Another arrow soared through the air and hit the monster.

Conner didn't have time to contemplate where Adam was with the arrows. The thing was closing in on Kim. Billy jumped in with his daggers, succeeding in blowing it away. Somewhere to his right, Conner heard a cry of "Brachio-staff, full power!"

A powerful blast temporarily threw off his balance, but he regained it quickly and called out to Ethan and Kira, "Z-Rex Blaster!"

The Yellow and Blue Rangers were beside him in a flash as they combined their weapons and fired on the monster that Conner had been fighting. It exploded into the typical bits of burned rubber. Conner hoped to God that Mesogog didn't make the normal rain storm come and bring the monsters back to life, only ten stories high. He waited, his heart frozen. The rain didn't come, but he still didn't know if he trusted it.

"Let's get back," Tommy was saying. "If those things grow, Billy can get here quickly enough and summon the Dragon-Zord."

Conner nodded and the eight of them teleported back to the lab.

* * *

There was a flash of green light. Wes scrambled to his feet. What was going on? Had Mesogog realized that they had help? Tryanno-drones appeared all over the area. Everyone scrambled to his or her feet. They had been sitting around the remains of their campfire from last night, morphing when Mary Anne asked them to and waiting.

"Shit," Jason muttered.

"Mary Anne, start getting people out of here!" Jen cried into her communicator.

"Not everyone is aligned yet!" Mary Anne said over the line, sounding desperate.

"Get who you can!" Jen yelled back.

There were several flashes of red and yellow light. Wes looked around to see who was left—himself, Carter, Jen and Hayley. But he didn't have much time to contemplate why he, Carter and Hayley were left. Drones were closing in one them from all sides.

"Spread out!" Wes called.

The four of them went in different directions. Wes turned and headed for the section that he, Kira and Carter had been in eventually. If he could get to the tree that he and Kira had been climbing, he could get up high enough to climb across trees and probably throw off the drones, assuming they didn't shoot off the branch he was on. He wasn't worried about any of the others—Jen could hold her own in a fight with no trouble. So could Carter, in spite of any injuries he had sustained. Hayley, if she had learned anything at all from the great Tommy Oliver, had probably learned to defend herself.

He found the tree quickly enough and hauled himself up onto the branches, climbing as fast as his tired and aching limbs would allow him. He glanced down and saw the drones looking up at the tree, obviously not sure what to do. A drone aimed its gun upwards at him. A jolt of panic ran through him as he turned and continued climbing. Survival was an instinct that let people perform great feats. A blast from a drone's gun was close—to close. He could feel the heat from the laser brush his ear.

It seemed like years before he reached the highest branches on the tree—where he had been before Carter ran into Jen. He looked down, not surprised that he couldn't see the ground from where he was. That was the point. If the drones couldn't see him, he had the advantage. He reached out for the nearest branch and began the slow work of crossing the trees.

The sun was shining up here and it was peaceful compared to the battle that had been raging on the ground. It was almost ironic that an island where they were supposed to have destroyed each other could be a place of peace.

A female shriek penetrated the air. That was loud—extraordinarily loud because he could hear it all the way up where he was. It didn't sound like Jen, so he assumed that it was Hayley. Maybe she couldn't defend herself after all. He lowered himself down the branches of the current tree and the scene came into sight. Two drones were holding Hayley while two more appeared to be arguing over who was going to destroy her.

Wes jumped out of the tree and landed on one of the drones holding Hayley. That gave her the opportunity she needed to twist away from the other.

"Time for Time Force!"

He morphed and pulled out his chrono-blaster, blasting the four drones in succession. "Thanks," Hayley said as he powered down.

"No problem," he replied.

At that moment, he felt himself picked up by some unknown force and dropped down into the lab at Tommy's house. Hayley landed next to him and they exchanged a glance. Mary Anne and Billy were at the control panel.

"I'm with Carter," Jen was saying. "I'll stay until you can get him out."

"All right," Mary Anne replied. "But I'll send reinforcements if the drones come again."

Wes felt his heart sink. Jen was still on that island, even though she didn't have to be and was risking her life. He knew, deep down, that she had to do it, but he wanted to be with her. Billy turned around in the captain's chair and gazed at Wes. He knew that look—it was understanding. The brief gesture went unnoticed by all not involved. Billy turned to Hayley.

"Good thing we had a sample of your DNA on file, otherwise we couldn't have gotten you off the island," he said.

Wes sank onto the floor as they continued talking. He was back to waiting.

* * *

Night had fallen. Tommy walked into the lab. He wasn't surprised to see that Billy was still working on the teleportation system. "How's it going?" he asked.

Billy raked a hand through his messy hair. "I haven't made any progress."

"Maybe you should get some sleep?"

"No…" the genius trailed off. "The Time Force power source aligned with the teleportation grid and it was man-made. I don't understand why the Lightspeed one won't do the same thing." He paused. "It has something to do with Mesogog. We are not going to be able to get Carter or Kendrix back until we take out whatever shields he has around that island and around his fortress."

Tommy felt a knot of tension settle in his stomach. Rangers did not leave other rangers to suffer. They fought until the death for their own, but if what Billy was saying was true, they needed to get working on their zords. The zords looked past repair. The Dragon-Zord had told Billy that they could be repaired, but so much time had been lost since then. And to top all of this off, no one had any idea where Cole or baby Karone were. Various people had been calling Cole's cell phone all day and had gotten no answer, only his voicemail.

"Keep trying," Tommy said, aware of the quavering in his own voice.

"What do you think I've been doing?" Billy retorted.

"Why are you two still up?"

The pair of them turned to see Kimberly coming down the stairs to the lab, dressed in an oversized t-shirt and pajama pants.

"I'm trying to convince him to go to sleep," Tommy replied.

Kimberly just smiled. "Billy," she said in a cajoling tone. "You're not going to help anyone out if you don't sleep."

To Tommy's eternal shock and surprise, Billy gently took Kim's hand and the two of them headed upstairs together. He smiled. Who would have thought? Billy and Kim? Back in high school, they would have made the least-likely couple ever. But now, they seemed suited for one another in a strange sense. He decided to take the night shift, keeping in contact with Jen. Her and Carter seemed all right. At least they could talk to them. But Kendrix… Cole… who knew?

* * *

"This is disappointing, Elsa."

"I know, my lord. I cannot explain what happened on the island-"

"However," Mesogog interrupted and she froze. "You have failed in all tasks set before you today. The one without a morpher still runs free. Most of the ones on the island have escaped and the one still there will likely die from his injuries making no victory for us. The rangers defeated two of my monsters while all the rest of this is going on."

"My lord, I can-"

"I do not want your explanations, Elsa. The best-laid plans have gone to waste."

"Lord Mesogog-"

"SILENCE!" he roared. She fell silent. All her explanations and excuses were no good to anyone now. He was angry. "I have trusted you one too many times." Mesogog's voice was a low hiss, barely audible, but she caught every word. She had practically stopped breathing.

Mesogog folded his hands behind his back and began pacing. That was a bad sign. He never paced or had his hands behind his back unless something very ingenious or something very bad had just come up.

"I shall just have to take care of this myself and truly by myself, without any of your interference. This mess will be cleared up by tomorrow." 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Welcome to new reviewers-- I know this thing is quite a read from the beginning! And to everyone who has reviewed-- I thank you for sticking with me here. :) So things will continue in the windmills of my mind... and since I am comfortably ensconced in my room-- it is cold outside-- I shall do reviewer responses for those who reviewed chapter 20:

**Anonymous**- That is a good question-- whether or not Rocky is going to show up. He isn't included simply because he was not a part of Forever Red (even though he could have been in Forever Red instead of Eric. All they had to do was put him in the Ninjetti outfit.) But at any rate, I'm glad you thought to ask about Rocky. Poor man... he is so underrated and forgotten!

**Charles RocketBoy**- Of course Mesogog has something planned-- and if he doesn't, he's definitely going to retaliate. I mean what evil overlord can stand to be bested by their enemies? Glad you're liking it!

**cmar**- I always did wonder why the DT rangers never made the connection... go figure. And things be simple? Around this fic? Surely you jest! And as to the computer security-- that is rather frightening, isn't it? Thanks for the comments and I'm glad that I'm getting better with Eric's character.

**Funky In Fishnet**- You know, every time I see your pen-name, I think of Rocky Horror. I don't know if that is the intention or not. But at any rate, I'm glad you like Mary Anne. I had the idea early on (before this fic even) to see what a child of Billy and Trini would be like and there she is! :)

**jim hawking jr**- Thanks! Your short reviews always make me smile!

**Giannola**- Jen's vision is actually tied back to the first chapter-- the scene is when Wes, Jason and Tommy are talking about their girlfriends. And Cole certainly does have his work cut out for him. I'm glad you're liking it!

**Ranger Lover**- I have no problem with you repeating yourself! I appreciate that you review every chapter and let me know that you're still out there reading and enjoying it!

**Satori Blackthorn**- Wow! Thanks for the review and all your kind words! I know this is quickly becoming quite a read, especially from the beginning. :) I am especially flattered that you think my characterization is solid. (I'm not as familiar with some seasons as I am with others-- I started watching the original MMPR when I was eight and in third grade. So, unlike you, I have gaps in the middle.) And of course the twists and cliffhangers will keep coming! I am glad you like it-- keep the good feedback coming!

**sayinjinj7**- Thanks! I am continuing with the story-- partly as a personal commitment and partly in response to popular demand. But thanks for your kind words and praise. :)

**the-power-of-love**- Glad you like it! I can't tell you if Andros and Ashley will ever get Karone back! That would spoil the ending! Also leave me the domain for your e-mail and I can get back to you in more detail.

**white time ranger**- Thanks! I'm glad you approve of the end scene from the last chapter. I've only seen ahem three episodes of Time Force plus the Wild Force/Time Force team-up, so I've had a hard time deciding on Jen's character. Glad it passes inspection!


	22. Living On A Prayer

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Twenty-Two: Living On A Prayer**

Carter propped himself up against a tree. According to Tommy's latest report, everyone was out of the island with the exception of himself and Kendrix. That was not including Jen who was staying on the island until everyone got off. It also excluded Cole, whom no one seemed to be able to get in contact with. His head still throbbed painfully and was not aided by the fact that his back hurt. He knew that Billy was working as fast as he could to get the teleportation grid aligned for his power source, but it seemed like he was waiting an eternity.

"Are you okay?" Jen asked, rolling up one of the sleeping bags.

"I'll be fine," he replied. He wondered why the drones hadn't attacked again during the night. It would have made the most sense since that was when they would have been most vulnerable. He could scarcely believe that this was the third day he was going to spend on this island. It seemed like mere moments ago that the drones had tossed him and Wes and Kira into one of the sections with orders to destroy one another.

The morning air was cool, but the sun shone brightly. In fact, it seemed to be overly cool on this island all the time—he could not remember the last time that he had felt properly warm. His fingers felt frozen and the only thing that kept him from believing he had frostbite was that he could move his fingers.

Jen poured out some of the hot coffee from the thermos that Mary Anne had her pick up a few minutes ago. She handed him the mug. The warm ceramic helped to unfreeze his fingers and he sipped the scalding liquid, not caring that it burnt his tongue and throat on the way down. He just flat out felt weak. He didn't want Jen to stay on the island with him just because she felt an obligation to. He hated feeling like he was the one holding down progress. He was the one injured and the one stuck on the island and was the one holding down progress.

"Carter, quit looking like you want to jump off a bridge."

He looked up at Jen. She had an easy smile on her face. He remembered her, knew who she was, but didn't know her very well. The Lightspeed Rescue Rangers had helped the Time Force Rangers when Vypra decided she didn't want to stay in the grave. All he had known at the time was that her and Wes cared deeply about one another and that she had a fierce devotion to her team and what they were trying to accomplish.

"Do I really look that desperate?" he countered.

Jen thought for a moment. "Yes. None of this is your fault. Quit acting like you purposely decided that the drones would hurt you and that the teleportation system won't align with your power source." She paused. "You'll see your family again if I have anything to say about," she added fiercely.

Carter had no doubt about that, however, he was fairly certain that Wes wanted her to stay alive and not die doing something stupid. He understood how Wes felt towards Jen—it was the same thing he felt every time he saw Dana or Cory or Heather. He closed his eyes, once again reflecting how glad he was that his family was far away from all of this.

"At any rate," he replied. "There aren't any bridges on this island for me to jump off and I can't climb a tree to jump out of that, so I wouldn't be worried if I were you."

Jen smiled as she sipped her coffee. "I'm sure you're creative enough to think up other ways of doing yourself in."

He snorted and shook his head. "Not creative. Sorry. I failed art class in elementary school. My best subject in high school and college was math."

"There're other kinds of creativity. It takes creativity to lead a power team, even if planning and strategy don't come across as creative."

"I'm not the leader here."

"No, but you were a leader. That is something that can never be taken away. You shouldn't feel inferior here just because the Dino Thunder Rangers have another leader. Almost everyone here was a leader." She paused. "Except for Eric, even though he still followed the mindset that he was the leader."

Carter shrugged. "Sometimes it's better to let people believe what they will."

Jen laughed. "Sometimes," she agreed. "So what's your wife up to these days? If I recall correctly, she was a pediatrician back when you guys bailed us out."

"Still is," he replied. "She just works part-time now as opposed to the full-time job she had then."

"Well, your kids are pretty little." She paused and then smiled as she obviously thought of something else. "Are you two planning on having any other kids?"

Carter stared at her. "I don't think so. Two is more than enough." He paused. "And don't think it's because we have a boy and a girl. I think we would have stopped at two anyways regardless of the gender. If we had more than two, we'd be outnumbered and that prospect does not appeal to me," he added. "You and Wes planning on having kids?"

Jen snorted. "I have no idea. We haven't gotten that far yet. I suppose if it happens, it happens and there's not much I can do about it." She shrugged. "I can imagine Wes with kids, but somehow I don't work into that picture."

"You'd probably do fine with them. Dana and I didn't know anything about babies or kids until Cory was born, but we picked it up fast enough."

"No practical experience?"

"No…" he trailed off thinking of the best way to phrase the next statement. "It's different when the kids are yours and not someone else's. You can't hand them back. People are handing them back to you."

Jen glanced down at his left hand. "I see the drones didn't get your wedding band when they stripped you guys of jewelry."

Carter laughed. "I was unconscious when that was going on and they probably couldn't get it off anyways." He shrugged. "I can't."

"I hope we can get everyone's jewelry back once this mess is over," Jen said softly. "I imagine that quite a few wedding rings got taken away."

He nodded and then froze. There was a flash of green light. Not again! He turned and saw drones materialize in front of them. When were these things going to quit? Probably not until one of them was dead. He struggled to his feet and landed in a defensive stance.

"Get out of here, Jen!" he hissed.

"No!" she replied. "You can't fight."

The drones advanced on them, in the usual mass numbers that they always seemed to appear in. Carter pushed the button on his morpher. "Lightspeed rescue!" he called and was morphed, taking away some of the residual pain and giving him some strength back.

"Dino thunder, power up!" he heard Jen call and he turned to see the Purple Dino Thunder Ranger standing beside him.

He kicked away the first few drones and then pulled out his blaster. He aimed and fired a few shots at the drones, taking down some. Jen was wielding a lance against the drones and was having moderate success in driving them back.

"STOP!" a loud, hissing voice commanded.

The drones froze and at the same time, Carter felt his body seize up and immobilize as if something was binding him tightly. He flew upwards and hit the trunk of a tree hard. The grip was released as he crashed to the ground and involuntarily powered down. He tried to push himself up, but had no success. The cut between his shoulders was more painful than it had ever been and was limiting his movement. He caught sight of Jen, powered down as well and being held between two drones.

"Say goodbye, ranger," the sinister voice said.

Something came down hard on his leg. He screamed as he felt and heard the sickening snap of his own bones. His body was flung at the tree again and this time his side took the brute of the blow, bruising and snapping ribs. Soon he was too pain-filled and delirious to realize what was going on. All he knew was that some time later, minutes, hours, he didn't know, he was laying on the ground and couldn't move. He could barely keep his eyes open, but when he did, his sight was tinted red.

He watched, half in his delirium, as the drones approached Jen. He wanted to help, but he couldn't move. He didn't know what was a dream and what was reality. Her mouth was open and she was probably screaming, but he couldn't hear anything. All he could feel was numbness over his entire body and a roaring in his ears. The thing that had attacked him approached Jen and hit her twice on the head with the blunt end of his sword. She collapsed to the ground, motionless and the drones and that thing materialized into thin air.

Carter closed his eyes. He was so tired. Somewhere he had read that when injured as much as he knew he was, one needed to stay awake. For some reason, he felt light and just wanted to sleep.

Dana… He could see her image before his eyes. No! He didn't want to die! He didn't want to leave his family, he didn't want Dana to be a widow! He was going to make it, he wanted to stay awake. He tried to speak, but he couldn't move his lips. Everything felt so heavy and so light as the same time. He squeezed his eyes shut tighter and all he could see was red. No! Stay awake!

The struggle to stay awake seemed to last forever, before he finally succumbed to what his mortally wounded mind and body wanted. He closed his eyes and drifted into unconsciousness.

* * *

Tommy knew something was wrong the moment he walked into the lab and saw the stricken looks on Billy and Mary Anne's faces. Sometime since Hayley had been abducted and returned, Mary Anne had taken over the tech duties. Not that Hayley minded the break. She was upstairs with the others trying to recover from the scare of almost being forced to destroy one another. He felt his heart constrict in his chest. What was going on now?

"What is it?" he asked quietly.

"We've lost contact with Jen and Carter," Billy replied softly.

"What?" he said several decibels louder than he intended.

"I can't get either of them to reply," the Green Dino Thunder Ranger explained. "Jen's morpher is still intact and so is Carter's as far as I can tell. I just can't get either of them to reply to my messages. It's like the morpher either isn't with them or they're unconscious."

"Shit," Tommy muttered, raking a hand through his messy hair. "We have to figure out a way to get the shields off of that island."

"I'm still getting life signals though," Billy stated. "Although that could mean almost anything."

"They could be on the brink of death," Tommy spat. Great, first he had thought that only two rangers and a baby were missing, but now the number of missing persons had just jumped to five. For the first time in a while, he felt helpless. He was out of ideas and had no clue what they needed to do next.

Billy shook his head. "I also don't think Kendrix is on that island. Wherever Mesogog has her, it's somewhere else."

"Can we get her morpher to her so we can get her out of where she is?"

"It would take more telekinesis than Andros or I have. I'd also feel better if we could contact Jen because she would be able to tell us where Kendrix was."

"Unfortunately, that is a luxury we don't have." He paused. "See if you can track down Kendrix by using traces of her power source. It won't be strong, but it's worth a try."

"It is," Billy agreed.

Tommy sighed. "And we'll just have to trust that Cole is safe and alive wherever he is. Hopefully he surfaces soon."

"Should some of us go to the island to make sure that Jen and Carter are all right?" Billy suggested.

Tommy felt a war begin in his mind. He wanted all the people he could to be alive and whole, if someone was sent to the island it was quite likely that they would suffer the same fate that Carter and Jen had. He didn't want more people missing or out of commission. On the other hand, he didn't want the pair of them to be stuck on an island, possibly dying. At this moment in time, he was having trouble determining what the greater good was. He sighed. He had to compromise both sides of this argument until he further knew what was going on.

"Keep trying to contact them," he said. "If there's still no response by tomorrow morning, then I'll send a team to find them."

"But what do we tell the others?" Billy asked.

The question was legitimate. Leo was already half-sick with worry over Kendrix and now that everyone was aware of Kendrix's condition, most could guess why Mesogog had her locked up somewhere else. Tommy could imagine Wes' reaction to this recent news about Jen. It would be much the same reaction as Leo only worse, since Billy was fairly sure that Jen and Carter were still on that island. Tommy could feel a throbbing starting in his temple. He had been called 'the greatest ranger ever' and now he was wondering what he had done to deserve that title. Right now, he felt like a mediocre leader. Not only was he dealing with his team, but with rangers that came from virtually every team before his current team.

"I don't know," he said with a sigh. "I don't know what to do now. We don't have zords. We have five people missing. Mesogog could unleash another monster at any moment and make it grow and we would be obliterated."

Billy looked between Tommy and his daughter. "Look, I'll go brief everyone on the current situation," he volunteered. "Mary Anne, keep an eye on the readings," he told the young teen. "And start the scans for Kendrix. We've already got her morpher programmed in, we just need to find her."

Mary Anne nodded and swung around in the captain's chair to face the screens, her fingers flying over the keyboard. Billy climbed the stairs leading to the house. Tommy gave Mary Anne a fleeting look and headed for the zord bay. The charred carcasses of the biozords were a vivid reminder of the advantage Mesogog still had over them. A lump lodged in his throat. The Dragon-Zord was in the zord bay and opened its friendly red eyes when Tommy entered.

"Hey, old friend," he said mournfully. "You don't happen to have any advice for me, do you?"

The zord roared. Tommy smiled. There was something reassuring about that roar. As if the zord was telling him that help would arrive. He shook his head. There was no help coming. He failed to understand how Billy could communicate with the zord. All his time with the zord, he had played the Dragon-Dagger to control it and had never assumed it more than a giant machine. Now, it appeared that it was linked first to the green Dino-Gem and secondly to the dagger. Billy had both and could talk to the zord like none of his predecessors could.

"I wish help was coming," he said sadly. "But there's nothing left."

The Dragon-Zord winked. Tommy smiled again.

"I'm glad you're optimistic, even if none of us are."

The zord just shook its giant head and closed its eyes, going back to sleep. Tommy shook his head. Maybe the zord was right and there would be help. Sighing, he left the zord bay and headed upstairs to face the questions and suggestions of the others.

* * *

Cole awoke from a fitful sleep. He and Kaye had walked until he found another motel off of the interstate. The rain had not yielded until well after he found the new motel and they got settled in. He had dragged himself into the lobby, cold, wet and dirty, dragging a squalling baby and two filthy bags. The woman had looked concerned, but took Wes' credit card without question and assumed, once more, that he was Wesley A. Collins and that the baby was his daughter.

Once in their room, he had gotten Kaye dry, fed and settled into a makeshift crib he constructed out of extra pillows and towels. She settled down immediately and went to sleep. He had then taken a quick shower and slipped into the complimentary bathrobe at the motel—as all of the clothes in the duffel bag needed to be put in the dryer. His stomach rumbled, but he ignored it and, too exhausted to find food, fell onto one of the beds and fell asleep. However, his sleep was disturbed by nightmares of the drones and an uneasy feeling that he was being watched. He woke up every half hour it seemed and had to check to make sure that Kaye was all right and still with him.

It was finally morning when he awoke. Kaye was awake and staring at him inquisitively. He raised an eyebrow at her and set about feeding her and changing her. He wished that he had not had to abandon the car. All thought he had of getting a cell phone charger and calling Alyssa had vanished with the drone attack. And the others… he didn't know where the others were, if the Dino Thunder Rangers were still on that island. For all he knew, he could be the only one left and he was car-less and running with a baby that was not his.

"This is getting bad, Kaye, very bad," he said to the baby as he burped her. "If only I had brought my cell phone charger from home, none of this would be happening."

The baby said nothing. He didn't blame her. The topic was not really one that was conducive to idle chatter. It was actually rather depressing. He mentally slapped himself. He was not going to go slaphappy because he was so anxious and fearful.

"I need to get some food," he said mindlessly. "And then I need to get a cab or something so we can get out of here and someplace where those dumb reptiles won't look for us." He paused. "But where? Where can we go?"

He thought briefly of getting a cab to the nearest airport and jumping on the next plane to Turtle Cove, but if those drones found a way to fly, he would be endangering everyone else on the plane. No… a cab or even a rental car… His thoughts froze. Perhaps he could get a cab to a rental car place and then he would have transportation once more. As soon as his hopes inflated, they deflated. What kind of rental car place was going to give a guy with an expired driver's license a car? None. Nil. Zilch. It had to be the cab.

He settled Kaye into the carrier and then got dressed in some of the still-damp clothes from the duffel bag. It was better than nothing. He then rounded up all of the things and headed for the lobby. The woman there was helpful and called a cab company that took credit cards. Soon enough a cab was on its way for him and Kaye.

"Where're you two headed?" the woman asked, trying to start a friendly conversation as he waited.

"Up north," he replied vaguely. "We're seeing my… uncle," he finished lamely.

"Oh that's nice!" the woman gushed. "By the way, your daughter looks just like you!"

That was a lie and Cole knew it. Kaye was fair-haired and eyed, taking after her parents. Perhaps the eyes led her to believe the similarities… but the fact remained that Kaye looked like Andros and Ashley and nothing like Cole. Of course, he supposed that strangers could draw the similarities without trying.

The cab pulled up. He thanked the woman and got into the cab quickly. He named a hotel in the LA area for the driver to take them to. It was a really ritzy place, but he figured that if he could get in there and lay low, it would buy them more time. Besides, who was going to look for him in a really ritzy place where he obviously wouldn't blend in?

* * *

The Geno-Randomizer sputtered to life as Mesogog entered it. Elsa sighed, remembering when Zeltrax tried this and it failed. The Dino-Gems were no longer a source of power, since they didn't give their power to anyone other than their owners. The morpher on the male still on the island was worthless, a man-made source. The only option seemed to be what was happening right now. The machine slowed down and the doors slid open.

Elsa suppressed a gasp. The thing that came out was Mesogog, but wasn't Mesogog. It looked much more like a dinosaur and looked angrier and more ill-tempered than Mesogog had ever been before. Obviously, it had worked.

"Nothing can stop me now!" Mesogog's voice had gone from a low, sinister hiss, to a loud rumble that rattled her very bones. "I will go out at dawn and those rangers will not stand a chance against my new power!"

Elsa didn't doubt that. She was becoming increasingly more frightened of him as the transformation he had undergone started to fully form in her mind. He had gotten rid of more of his human DNA. He was trying to become an intelligent dinosaur. He was repressing whatever was left of his other half. If she didn't hate the rangers so much, she might have been tempted to work with them.

Mesogog turned and left the room. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Thanks for all the reviews and comments! I hope that the beginning paragraph of this chapter cleared up any uncertainties over who is and is not still on the battle royale island. Also, welcome to new reviewers-- I know a couple of people picked this up at the last update. :) Continue with the great feedback guys! Also, my request for y'all to e-mail me if you're confused still stands-- my e-mail address can be found on my profile page. Once more, thanks for sticking around and reading! --EK


	23. When I Close My Eyes

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Twenty-Three: When I Close My Eyes**

Kendrix suppressed a scream that was welling up in her throat. It wouldn't do any good to scream—she had tried that already and nothing happened. She was not entirely sure where she was even. The tiny cell she had been put in had a single window letting in a pale, dusty stream of light. That small light was enough for her to see how filthy the cell was. In fact, she was no longer sure how long she had been in here. Her stomach rumbled painfully. None of this was good for her or the baby. If Mesogog wanted her baby, wouldn't it have been in his better interest to keep her comfortable and healthy? Although, she imagined most of the problems centered around the cyborg.

The only thing in her cell that got changed regularly was the water bucket. The cell stank of human refuse and moldy dirt. She tried to pick out the cleanest spot in the cell and sank to the ground, tears welling up in her eyes. She felt like all she had done in the time she had been by herself was cry or scream. And this was behavior expected of a former Power Ranger? Being locked up with no way out was not frightening her so much as the fact that she was by herself. This might be bearable if someone was with her.

"Leo!" she cried in between the harsh sobs that shook her entire body. "Let me out of here!" she screamed at the solid steel door.

In a wild frenzy, she threw herself at the door with some far-off notion of knocking down the door. Her nails scratched at the surface, but all the act got her in the end was a bruised shoulder and lower morale.

This wasn't happening. She wanted to be home with Leo, walking on the beach and doing all the ridiculous little things that people expecting their first baby did. Not that she was sure what those things were, but there had to be something. She was not trapped in a dirty, rank cell with no hope of escaping.

She could recall many times when she and Leo had been active rangers when Leo got trapped by someone and no one knew where he was. Trakeena had taken him prisoner at one point in time with the intent of destroying him. But a confused Sting-Winger gave him ample means to escape. Another time, he and Damon had been trapped by Captain Mutiny and Deviot and the galactic pirate had been going to destroy them at sunset. She recalled Damon telling her about that, since she had technically been dead and Karone had been serving as the Pink Galaxy Ranger. She sighed. Reminiscing was going to get her nowhere fast.

Closing her eyes, she tried to send a mental message like she had seen so many of the rangers before and after her do. She was not the one to try those things normally. She had been a GSA science officer, specializing in botany and ecology. There it was for anyone to see—she was a science nerd and not prone to believe anything of the supernatural. This was in contrast to Maya, her best friend and the Yellow Galaxy Ranger, who strongly believed that.

"Someone just get me out of here," she whispered, her eyes still squeezed shut tightly. "I don't care if it's Robin Hood, someone… please…" She trailed off as she convulsed into racking sobs once more. This was just great. She was going hysterical and then off the deep end into the abyss of insanity. Maybe that's why Mesogog was doing this—he wanted to drive her crazy so she would be complacent to whatever was going to happen.

"Come on!"

A voice echoed down the hallway. Kendrix gasped and scrambled to her feet. A loud scraping noise came from the door to her cell. The cyborg and some drones entered the cell.

"Ready to serve your purpose?"

"No!" Kendrix screamed as the drones advanced on her and tried to hold her down. Something about being threatened filled her with a crazed strength and she flailed her limbs so that they couldn't get a good grip on her.

"Such antics." The cyborg approached her with a large syringe filled with something green that did not look normal.

Kendrix let out an ear-piercing shriek and struggled even more against the drones. She jerked one of her arms free and elbowed the offending drone in the face. This gave her enough momentum to free her other arm and try to dash out of the cell. A drone grabbed her leg and she tripped just in the doorway of the cell.

"You won't win," the cyborg said mildly.

She closed her eyes and then she saw it—her morpher. Her morpher was right in front of her face. Not bothering to contemplate how it got there, she grabbed it and pressed the correct button, screaming, "Go galactic!"

In the instant she morphed, she felt her body materialize and then appear… in the lab?

* * *

"I think I've got a lock on Kendrix!"

Tommy shook himself from his stupor as he had been staring at the wall in the lab. He dashed over to where Hayley and Billy were manning the controls. Hayley was pointing to what appeared to be a small, out-of-the-way chamber on Mesogog's island fortress.

"The readings are centered there," Hayley continued. "But I can't get a strong enough lock on her unless she's morphed."

He turned and looked to Leo, who had taken to living in the lab along with Wes ever since the official count of who was missing had been announced. He wasn't worried about the people roaming around the house. Mesogog wasn't going to try to put them anywhere now that he knew they had a means for getting away. Leo's blue eyes were wider and more panicked than they had been yet.

"Can you get her morpher to her?" Leo asked in a hoarse voice.

Billy shook his head. "I don't know. My telekinesis isn't strong enough to send something that far." He looked over at Andros. The Space Ranger had just come into the lab and was assessing the situation.

"If we combine our powers," Andros said slowly, "it might be enough to get the morpher there. However, there's no guarantees that there will be a way to get it into the fortress and into her cell."

The looked on Leo's face could only be described as wild desperation. "Do it!" he whispered. "We have to try!" Leo squeezed his eyes shut and looked ready to break down at any moment. Ashley, who had followed Andros down stairs, gently took Leo by the arm and sat him down on some crates lying around the lab. She gently wrapped an arm around his shoulders and was whispering something in his ear.

Tommy found that truly amazing. Andros and Ashley had put their newborn baby into the hands of someone who admittedly knew nothing about babies. Now, Cole and Karone were missing. And even with their child God knows where, they were still able to remain calm and comfort those around them. He would have imagined that it should have been the other way around. Someone should have been comforting Andros and Ashley. However, whatever Ashley did calmed Leo down enough that he looked less desperate and more determined.

Billy took Kendrix's morpher out from where it had been under the scanners so that they could try to find Kendrix herself. The Green Ranger nodded at Andros and both of them held the morpher. "Do we know where this place is?" Andros asked.

Billy nodded. "I know. It will get there."

The two of them let go of the morpher. The morpher floated in the air between the two men and then took off like a shot. Leo gasped and stood up, Ashley trying to keep him from doing so. In no time at all, the morpher was out of the lab.

Tommy stared at Billy and Andros. The two of them had their eyes closed, concentrating their combined power on that morpher. Hayley had swung around in the captain's chair, watching them. The moment seemed to freeze in time. No one moved or breathed. It was like moving at all would disrupt something and they would lose Kendrix forever.

Andros suddenly opened his eyes. "It's there," he said.

Hayley swung back around to the computer. "Come on, Kendrix!" Hayley was saying to the computer. "Morph and I can have you out of there!"

Leo ran up to the computer. "What's she doing?" he cried.

"I can't tell," Hayley said as she shook her head.

"It's there," Billy added.

"The door to the cell is open as well!" Hayley quickly surmised from the readings.

"Oh God," Leo groaned. "Just morph!"

There was suddenly a burst of pink energy on the screen. Hayley quickly moved her fingers over the keyboard. "I've got a solid lock!" she reported. "Teleporting…" It seemed that everyone in the lab turned around and stared at where people who were teleporting landed. There was a streak of pink light and Kendrix landed in the lab, lying on the floor morphed.

"Kendrix!" Leo yelled, running to her.

"Power down," Kendrix muttered as Leo pulled her into his arms. She suddenly convulsed into sobs as Leo held her close. Tommy had the feeling that he was viewing a scene that was not meant to be public in the long run. "Leo…" Kendrix was sobbing. "They wanted our baby and they wanted to do experiments and…"

"Shhh…" Leo whispered to her. "You're safe now."

Ashley walked over to the couple and gently stroked Kendrix's hair. "Nothing's going to happen to you Kendrix. We're not going to let it."

Tommy caught Andros' gentle smile as he joined his wife and the two Galaxy Rangers. He had one arm around Leo and the other around Kendrix. Billy and Tommy exchanged a glance. There were times he hated being a ranger, but it was times like this that he loved being a ranger and wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.

"Hayley," Tommy said to her, since the situation with Kendrix appeared to be well in hand. "Keep the scans going on the island for Jen and Carter. I want a full diagnostic report of that thing before we send someone in."

"Who's going in?" Hayley asked as her fingers flew over the keyboard once more.

He sighed. "I don't know."

"I'm going," Wes spoke up.

Tommy nodded at him, knowing that he would be the first to volunteer. Aside from Wes, he wanted other Dino Thunder Rangers in there who could teleport without the computer. He'd probably send Adam and one of the kids down there. But there was time to work all of that out. It would still take Hayley a while to do the scan. While they had time, he just hoped that Carter and Jen had time as well.

* * *

Cole thanked the cab driver as he got out in front of one of the ritziest hotels in the LA area. If this wasn't going to throw off that crazy cyborg woman then he didn't know what was going to. And if Wes got mad about the exorbitant charges on his credit card… well… there wasn't much he could do about it since it would take him thirty years to pay him back. But then again, Wes probably wouldn't mind too terribly much. Wes had always been really nice and laid-back about things whenever Cole was around him. (Granted, he tended to be around Carter more since they lived so close together, but still…)

He took a deep breath, shouldering the bags and switching the hand that the baby carrier was in. This had better work. He also hoped that his luck of not being asked for an ID when he handed over the credit card would hold out.

A bellhop in a wine red and gold-trimmed uniform held the door open for him. He flashed the guy a brief smile, trying not to look like he was hiding something and went into the lobby. He didn't take time to dwell on his opulent surroundings. He went straight to the front desk where a woman wrinkled her nose at him.

"May I help you, sir?" she asked, obviously wanting him to leave. Cole paused for a moment. He had showered and his clothes didn't smell that bad.

"I'd like a room," he replied.

"How are you going to pay?"

"Credit card."

"Really?" she raised an eyebrow as Cole handed her Wes' credit card. Her expression changed immediately when she read the name on the card. "Oh, Mr. Collins! I am so sorry! I didn't recognize you, sir! Your normal suite will be ready in a moment."

Normal suite? Cole just smiled and tried to act like this was perfectly natural. He didn't think he and Wes looked alike at all, but if this woman was going to believe that they did, then all the better. The cyborg was looking for Cole Evans, not Wesley Collins. He nodded to himself and checked on Karone as the woman bustled around and told a bellhop to take Mr. Collins and his bags up to the suite.

He followed the bellhop to the elevator. The man pressed a button for the top floor. When they got to the floor, Cole was impressed with the mere hallway, not to mention the room. The bellhop handed him a room key. "If there's anything else you require, Mr. Collins, then please call for room service."

Cole nodded and the man left. He was glad to finally be alone again and not in the public eye. The bags were set in the front hall. He assumed that if this was such a ritzy place, it probably had a complimentary laundry service. But he didn't want to investigate it now. He was still exhausted. Kaye had already gone to sleep. He sighed and got her comfortable on one of the beds, much the same way he had at the previous hotel. For some reason, he remembered watching a movie where the mother had put the baby in a makeshift crib out of pillows and towels. Oh yeah. It had been _Ghostbusters 2_ when he and TJ and Eric had watched both the Ghostbusters movies the first night they were in Reefside.

"Don't go out the window after any creepy ghost men dressed as nannies," he told Kaye. "I don't want to climb on the window ledge to go after you."

She slept on. Cole shook his head as he stripped down to his boxers and fell into the other bed, falling into the dreamless sleep of one mortally exhausted. It seemed like he had just closed his eyes when he opened them again. The clock in the room said that it was several hours later. Kaye was awake and fussing to be changed and fed. Why was it so hot in here? He padded across the room and checked the thermostat. The heater was on a comfortable level. He put his hand to his forehead, not that that was going to tell him if he was sick.

He quickly fed and changed Kaye, before going into the bathroom to look at himself. He looked a bit pale—but that could be explained by the lack of sleep and all the running. His eyes looked glassy and his cheeks were flushed. No… he couldn't get sick now! He didn't want to be sick around a baby. How could he face Andros and Ashley knowing that he got their child sick? That was assuming that some of the rangers were still alive.

Choking back a sob that rose in his throat, he went back out to the bedroom to find that Kaye was sleeping. Smart kid. He felt like doing the same thing. He lay down on the other bed and closed his eyes, wondering why it was so hot in the room.

* * *

The alarm chimes went off in the lab. Tommy watched as Hayley swung into action and brought up the surveillance screens. His heart froze when he saw what it was. The thing was already ten stories high and looked like Mesogog, but not Mesogog. No… the only times they had gone against Mesogog in battle, they had lost or Mesogog retreated long before they had an opportunity to find his weak spots. But this thing appeared much more dinosaur like and looked like it had no weak spots.

"What's going on, Doctor O?" Conner asked, swinging himself down the steps to the lab and freezing at the sight of the surveillance screens. "What is that? Is that Mesogog?"

Tommy nodded slowly. "I'm afraid so."

The other Dino Thunder Rangers ran into the lab and crowded around the screen. "I guess the rescue mission to the island is off?" Ethan asked, looking like it was a bad, but necessary idea to abandon that search.

"Looks like it." He paused. "Billy, you'll need to go out with the Dragon-Zord-"

But he was cut off by several people protesting at once. The roar of voices was nonsensical, the gist of it all being that the Dragon-Zord was old and not up to Mesogog's technology and that Mesogog would crush it like a fly.

"What choice to do we have?" he roared over the voices.

Everyone was silent at once. "None," Trent said. "We have to take out the Dragon-Zord and hope it will be enough."

"He's right," Adam agreed. "We're rangers. We don't give up. There has to be something we haven't thought of, something left to try."

Tommy hated to break it to him that most of the zords from the previous power teams were either destroyed, in a government building somewhere or lost with the power source. But he didn't say that. He just smiled bravely. "We'll think of something," he agreed softly.

"Aren't the Zeo Zords still left?" Kimberly asked.

Tommy shook his head. "No. They were lost when we went to the Turbo powers." But it had been a good thought.

"Tommy!" Eric yelled from the stairs.

"What?"

"You've got to come see this!" The Quantum Ranger disappeared at the top of the stairs. Tommy exchanged a glance with Adam and they followed Eric up the stairs with the rest of the Dino Thunder Rangers on their tail. "I think help is here," Eric said as they all clustered at the trapdoor to the lab.

Tommy took in the man standing with Eric. He was dressed simply in blue jeans and a blue flannel shirt. His brown hair was longish and he had a goatee going for him. In fact, he looked very familiar from the archives, but Tommy couldn't place where.

"Tommy Oliver?" the man asked. Tommy nodded. He bowed slightly, his entire persona filled with dignity and honor. "I am Merrick Baliton. I bring greetings from Princess Shayla."

"Uh, that's great," Conner interrupted. "But how will that help us now?"

Merrick raised an eyebrow at Conner. "He was the Lunar Wolf!" Ethan hissed.

"She has seen your troubles," Merrick continued as he led them slowly out onto the front porch. "And she sends these as a gift." He motioned to the sky. Tommy looked up, seeing nothing and wondering if Merrick was quite sane.

Suddenly, there was a terrific shriek from the sky and a huge yellow bird… no, wait… a huge yellow zord swooped down in front of them. Tommy looked at Merrick and slowly smiled. They heard a roar from behind the house and all eight of them ran around behind to see more zords sitting in the back yard. There were five zords in total. Merrick followed them, a wry smile on his serious face.

"These are the Wild Zords," he explained.

"Which one's mine?" Conner asked with a grin.

Merrick gave the young red ranger as appraising look. "The Red Lion will be yours to command," he replied. He turned to Kira and Ethan. "You two will have the Yellow Eagle and the Blue Shark." He then turned to Tommy and Trent, the last of the original five Dino Thunder Rangers. "You will command the Black Bison and the White Tiger." He paused. "Together, the five zords become the Wild Force Megazord."

Tommy gaped at the animal zords just lounging around his backyard. "I don't know what to say," he stammered. "This is amazing!"

Merrick just nodded slightly, before looking at Adam, Kimberly and Billy. "I don't have zords for you. I don't think Princess Shayla anticipated that there would be so many rangers."

"It's all right," Kimberly said. "We never really had zords to begin with."

"How?" Tommy asked.

"Princess Shayla saw the trouble from the Animarium. She contacted me and asked me to bring you the Wild Zords."

"Are you staying around for a while?" Trent asked him.

Merrick shrugged. "I wouldn't be much use in a battle since I no longer have my growl phone."

"It doesn't matter," Billy replied. "We need all the man power we can get."

Merrick shrugged again. Tommy took that to be a sign of acquiescence. He looked at all the Dino Thunder Rangers and the Wild Zords. "All right, guys!" he said. "Let's take care of Mesogog in his creepy new form."

There was a cry of "Dino thunder, power up!" and "White ranger, dino power!" and the eight of them appeared morphed. The five of them jumped up and into the new, well new to them, zords and took off towards Mesogog. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Thanks for the great feedback! To answer some questions that were asked (and I'm being a horrible person and lumping them all together rather than doing reviewer responses, because it's almost time for me to go to class!) All issues revolving around all characters will be resolved at the end, however some may have to wait until the very end. And it is implied that Adam could not phase out of the cell for the same reason that Billy and Andros couldn't use their telekinesis and Jason couldn't tap into his power source-- the shields/force fields. No, Cole is not still running around looking like a jungle boy gone wrong (that is not specifically stated either, but he does have Andros' clothes...) That appears to be all-- if I missed something, e-mail me-- but once more, thanks for the good comments! --EK


	24. Is It All In Vain?

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Twenty-Four: Is It All In Vain?**

"This is awesome!"

Conner grinned at Kira's voice over the communication system. She swooped the Yellow Eagle down towards the grounded zords, swatting at them playfully with a large talon. He had to admit, these zords were really cool. Unlike the biozords, these zords almost responded to their thoughts rather than commands. All he had to do was think about what he wanted his Red Lion zord to do and it was done. It seemed like the days of memorizing commands and controls were over for them. He'd keep his Wild Zord if Princess Shayla would let him.

"You leave my shark alone!" Ethan retorted to Kira. The Blue Shark was hovering a few feet above the ground and wriggling back and forth like it was swimming. The only problem was that there was no water anywhere and it looked odd. However, Ethan seemed to have developed an attachment to it. Heck, they all had grown to love their new zords in the half hour that they had been entrusted to them.

The Dragon-Zord was lumbering down the street behind them. They would have two full fighting zords if they chose to form the Wild Force Megazord. But from what Conner had seen of their zords, these animals were capable of lots on their own and didn't necessarily have to be combined for full fighting power.

"My tiger can take your eagle any day!" Trent joshed over the open communication line, obviously in the direction of Kira.

"I don't think so," Kira replied.

"And I'm going to kill all of you if you don't focus," Doctor O added to the conversation and effectively ended it.

Conner laughed to himself as the Red Lion carried him bounding towards downtown Reefside where the horror that Mesogog had become awaited them. He always knew that it would come to this—a final showdown between them and Mesogog, but he had not anticipated it coming so soon. Well, they had been fighting Mesogog for the better part of a year, but didn't these battles still come later? With determination in his eyes, he urged the Red Lion to go faster as it sped up its long bounds heading for the city.

"I love these zords!" Ethan said into the communication line. "We need to throw a party for that Merrick guy when we get back."

"If he's still there," Kira replied.

"Yeah," Conner added. "He didn't seem too thrilled about sticking around."

Merrick struck Conner as a decided loner and there was nothing that was going to sway him from that path. The man seemed nice enough, but there was something settled underneath his air of civility that he couldn't quite put his finger on. Perhaps it was guilt. That seemed to be a recurring emotion in Power Rangers who had been the last to join a team. But what did someone like Merrick have to be guilty about? Conner had to admit that he had no way of knowing anything about the Wild Force Rangers beyond the fact that Cole seemed like a decent guy and Merrick seemed more at home by himself then around others.

"He probably will stick around though," Doctor O said.

"Why?" Trent asked.

"If I recall correctly from the archives, he was once Princess Shayla's protector and, if she sent him on this mission, he will see it out to the end."

"Were they lovers or something?" Kira questioned.

"I don't know. And I'd imagine that we don't need to know."

Conner understood that sentiment. There was a lot about some rangers' past that they didn't want to talk about and that no one else knew about. Not that he personally had anything he wanted to keep hidden (except for maybe the crush he'd had on Kira since he met her, but she and Trent were dating so it was a moot point.) He imagined that some things were better left unsaid in the long run. His mother had always told him that and he hadn't really understood what it truly meant until now.

"Target on visual," Ethan said flippantly.

Well, when he was right, he was right. Mesogog towered over the buildings much in the fashion of the monsters he had sent to destroy them. Conner got the feeling that Mesogog had finally snapped in regards to his underlings botching what were pretty simple jobs.

"Let's bring 'em together, guys," Doctor O said.

Apparently, the thought went straight to the Wild Zords because he felt his zord propelled upward along with the other zords. In what seemed like a mere moment, he was sitting in a main control room with Doctor O, Kira, Ethan and Trent.

"Can we keep these?" he asked Doctor O.

He imagined that Doctor O was rolling his eyes under his helmet. "It's not my decision," their teacher replied. "You'll have to take that up with Princess Shayla."

"Bummer," Ethan muttered.

"Rangers?" Mesogog's voice had gone from a low, sinister hiss to a booming roar that was enough to rattle the smallest of nerves and capillaries in one's body.

"That'd be us," Conner replied.

"I see you have found yourselves new zords—it is a small matter. You will be crushed anyways." Mesogog indulged in roaring evil laughter.

"When will they ever learn a new laugh?" Doctor O groaned.

The Wild Force Megazord landed into a defensive position as the Dragon-Zord lumbered up besides them, brandishing his drill tail and missile-fingers. There was a soft accompanying sound of the Dragon Dagger as Billy used it to control the zord.

"You dredge up ancient zords? You are truly fools!"

Mesogog threw his arm forward and issued a bolt of pink lightening. The shock rattled both the zords and threw them back a step or two.

"Now I'm mad!" Conner growled. "Sword and shield mode!" he commanded, almost instinctively knowing that that would bring about the weapons they needed. Immediately, a sword appeared in the right hand of the megazord and a shield in the left hand. The megazord swung the sword expertly and hit Mesogog. The reptile creature screeched.

The Dragon-Zord stepped forward and hit Mesogog with its drill tail. The reptile screeched and aimed another bolt of lightening, this time at the Dragon-Zord. The megazord stepped in between them and deflected it with the shield. The energy burst reflected off the shied and back onto Mesogog. He staggered backwards.

"You will pay for that, rangers!" he said in a low voice, clutching his right shoulder. He charged towards them.

"Missiles!" Billy yelled from somewhere far off.

At the same time, Conner yelled, "Sword! Full power!"

The Dragon-Zord's missiles and the blow from the sword hit Mesogog square in the chest and his charge piddled out into a staggering walk, far from them. Sparks began to fly and Mesogog fell to his knees. Mesogog roared and aimed another blast at them. The Dragon-Zord took the full brunt of it and fell awkwardly to the side. The revitalizing music from the Dragon Dagger could be heard as the megazord stepped in front of the downed zord. This was something the Power Rangers believed in that the bad guys never had—they protected each other and left no man behind.

The megazord reached out and helped haul the Dragon-Zord back to its upright position. "Let's finish this," Doctor O said. The megazord charged up the sword and struck Mesogog across the back, between the shoulders. The Dragon-Zord took its cue and fired another round of missiles.

This time sparks really began to fly. An explosion seemed to come from Mesogog's very back as he screeched and fell to the ground. A fierce explosion followed, forcing the Dragon-Zord and the megazord to take a step backwards. Conner looked down to the ground. Mesogog had returned to his normal size and form. Whatever he had done to himself had been undone by their attack. Mesogog struggled to his feet and looked up at the towering Megazord and Dragon-Zord. He raised his hand and disappeared with a crack of green lightening.

"This isn't over," Doctor O said.

"Hey!" Conner replied. "At least we have zords that can't be destroyed by a virus since they aren't hooked up to our computer."

"The man's right," Ethan added.

"Can this thing fly?" Kira asked, changing the subject.

"I don't know," Conner and Doctor O said at the same time.

Kira nodded at them. "Let's find out." She held her communicator up to her mouth. "Hayley, what are the coordinates for that island?"

Hayley read them off. "Why?" she asked at the end.

"'Cause we're going to take out the shields and force fields around that sucker."

As if the megazord knew their intent, it floated up into the air and then sped off in the direction of the ocean and the battle royale island. Conner was amazed. How did the Wild Force Rangers get such cool zords when they got zords that had to be commanded for every move? These things were amazing. In no time at all, that dreaded island came into view.

"There's a generator," Trent said, pointing down to the island.

"Let's go for it," Conner replied.

The megazord landed next to the generator. Conner suddenly saw how that island had worked. All of the force fields that had made it so difficult for Billy and Mary Anne to get locks on people appeared to be powered from a single generator that was probably hooked up to a computer on Mesogog's island fortress. The megazord brandished the sword and took out the generator with a single blow. It sparked before exploding. A green crackle came over the whole island, excluding the generator and dissipated.

"Hayley," Doctor O said into his communicator. "I think it is safe to say that the battle royale island belongs to us. Send Adam and Kim with some others to start searching for Carter and Jen on that thing and keep close tabs on everyone."

"You got it," Hayley replied.

"Let's get back to the lab," Doctor O told them. "I have the feeling that Mesogog is just going to lick his wounds. He'll be back soon enough."

* * *

Wes tried to smile valiantly as he pulled the backpack full of gear that Hayley had given him in place on his back. He wanted to help with this. He wanted to find Jen. With everything that happened, it had been impossible to tell if she was hurt, if she just flat wasn't answering or if something got a hold of her morpher. He knew that Tommy had everyone's best interests in mind when he told everyone to stay put and not leave the lab until they knew more. He wanted to do this and he was terrified of it at the same time. He didn't want to find Jen dead or dying, not when they had been so close to being together after all this time.

Hayley turned to them from the control panel. She was sending himself, Adam, Kimberly (those two on Tommy's orders) and Jason. He and Jason had actually volunteered. "I'm still getting life signals on them," Hayley was saying. "If they need immediate medical assistance, I can get a Life Flight helicopter there in no time."

"That's comforting," Jason muttered.

"If you guys run into any trouble, I mean any trouble, contact me immediately." She paused. "Adam and Kim, you guys can teleport out from your morphers. I need to get Wes and Jason from the computer, so keep an open communication line."

"Will do," Adam replied.

"Good luck, guys," Hayley said softly. Adam and Kimberly pressed the buttons on their morphers and disappeared in two streaks of orange and pink light. Hayley tapped a few buttons on the keyboard and Wes felt himself lifted upward and land on that horrible island once more.

"Hayley," Adam said into his communicator. "Can you get us the coordinates of Jen?"

"Sure," Hayley said and read off some figures. "You can also use the scanner to track her."

Adam pulled a small scanner out of his pocket and flipped it open. It came to life and began to beep. The Orange Ranger made a slight half turn and pointed into the trees. "This way," he said.

"Hayley," Kimberly asked. "Why don't you just teleport Jen out of here?"

Wes had been wondering the very same thing. "I don't want to risk it," Hayley replied. "She could be badly injured and the teleportation is not easy on the system. You guys don't feel anything because you're strong and healthy. If someone is seriously injured, teleportation could put enough strain on their system to kill them while they teleported someplace."

Wes felt his heart constrict with panic and bile rise in the back of his throat. These people were all Power Rangers or dedicated to helping rangers. He should have thought that certain things seemed to be neglected because something like that could happen. He said a small prayer of thanks as he followed Adam through the thick foliage. This island seemed so peaceful. It was hardly like the place of terror that it had been to them.

"We'll find her, man," Jason said from behind him.

Wes turned around and tried to smile, failing miserably. He felt like throwing up. He felt like he was in a nightmare and soon he would wake up and find out that everything had been merely a dream. This was just a dream… Perhaps Jen was safely back in the year 3000 and he was still dreaming of her. It seemed like a cruel twist of fate, to give him exactly what his heart had longed for and then snatch it away without a second thought.

Hot tears stung his eyes. He furiously wiped at them with the back of his hand. He was not going to lose it over this. They were going to find Jen and she was going to be fine. He tried to swallow the lump in back of his throat. This was his worst nightmare.

"You all right?" Jason asked him. Wes nodded quickly, not wanting everyone with him to suddenly be aware of the nightmarish possibilities running through his head. "Wes," Jason said softly. "Jen is a Power Ranger. She's strong. She'll come out of this."

"I hope so," he replied softly.

"Hey man," Jason said sharply, but in such a way that meant he was serious and attention needed to be paid. "We are Power Rangers and Power Rangers do not give up."

Wes nodded, realizing that what Jason said was true. He fixed his eyes on Adam's back and the forest in front of him. He hoped that Jason was right.

* * *

Tommy smiled as he walked out onto the back porch and saw Conner sitting on the lawn, looking up at the huge Red Lion zord. Everything in the house had settled down, especially once the team to look for Carter and Jen went out. Andros and Ashley had tried calling Cole's cell phone, but with the same results as before. The cell phone had to be dead and Cole probably didn't have a charger, otherwise he would have called. No one dared entertain any of the worse case scenarios concerning that.

Leo and Kendrix were upstairs in his guest room. Kendrix had calmed down after they initially teleported her back. What her and Leo were doing up in that guest room was left open to the imagination, but since the imaginations of these people tended towards the erotic, he could probably guess for himself what was running through the ranks.

The Red Lion roared. Conner turned around to see him, a wide grin spreading over his face. "These zords are cool, Doctor O!" he called.

He stuffed his hands in his pockets and made his way out across the lawn. The Black Bison made a noise in his direction that could only be described as a 'moo.' He laughed and waved at the Wild Zord that seemed to claim him. It mooed again and went back to whatever it was that it was doing over by the trees. The Yellow Eagle swooped down and screeched at the pair of them.

"Lucky for us that Merrick showed up when he did," Conner commented.

"Can't argue with you there," Tommy replied.

"I just want to know how Princess Shayla knew," Conner continued. "I mean, the archives said that she went back to sleep after the orgs were defeated." Tommy smiled, forgetting how extensive the archives actually were and how often Conner and the others watched them for pure entertainment value.

"It's much like I already told you."

The pair of them turned to see Merrick coming out of the house and heading across the yard towards them. He looked a bit frazzled, probably from the sheer number of people running around his house.

"Did she wake up?" Conner asked, scrambling to his feet as Merrick joined them.

Merrick nodded. "She did. Sometimes when there are disturbances of a great kind, she awakens and sends help. She had been asleep for 3000 years before she woke up and gave the Wild Force powers to five people."

"Why didn't she wake up before that?"

Merrick shrugged. "I suppose because Zordon was still alive and powering the different groups of rangers. The ones that followed were powered by something and her intervention was not needed until the orgs surfaced."

"I don't get it." Tommy laughed as Merrick raised an eyebrow.

"It is safe to say that she realized your zords had been destroyed and she was the only with the power to give you new zords."

Conner nodded and glanced back to his Red Lion. It was obvious that, no matter how much they had enjoyed their biozords, these zords took a much more personal approach to being a zord and that the kids liked them a lot. "I just have one more question," Conner said.

Merrick looked like the prospect might be either amusing or terrifying. Tommy was inclined to agree with him. Most of the things Conner said were either amusing, dumb or, in his lucid moments, brilliant. Not that Conner wasn't smart, he was. His smartness just manifested itself in different ways from others. That was part of the reason that Tommy was inclined to believe in multiple kinds of intelligence.

"Yes?" Merrick asked.

"Were you and Princess Shayla ever involved with each other?"

Tommy coughed loudly and falsely. Merrick just gave Conner his usual stoic look. Trust Conner to ask about what everyone else was thinking about. "Once," Merrick replied. "Over 3000 years ago."

"You're 3000 years old?"

Merrick shrugged. "I was trapped behind a mask for most of them."

"Dude!" Conner looked impressed. "Where do you live? Where do you work?"

The man seemed nonplussed by all the questions. "I traveled for a while, but I came back to Turtle Cove." He shrugged again. "I work at a bar."

That impressed Conner even more because his mouth was hanging wide open with a mixture of awe and admiration written all over his face. Tommy just laughed and Merrick cracked a smile. Some things were just too priceless.

"Are you the bartender?" Conner asked.

Merrick nodded. "What? Did you think I was the waitress?"

Conner frowned. "No, but you never can tell."

"So what do you do?" Merrick asked Conner.

"I play soccer." He paused. "And I'm still in high school."

"Are you teaching?" the Lunar Wolf asked Tommy.

But he never got a chance to answer or to tell him that Cole was missing and that what most of Cole had told him after that mission to the moon was probably now obsolete. There was a flash of green lightening. Tommy felt a slight pang of anxiety in his stomach as the three of them launched into defensive positions. Elsa was standing before them with one of her trademark unpleasant grins on her face.

"I bring a message from Mesogog," she said.

"Like that's good news," Conner muttered.

"Silence," she said savagely to Conner before turning her entire attention to Tommy. "My master wants to face you, alone."

"Really?" Tommy asked.

"Yes, really!" she snapped. "Meet him in front of the Museum of Natural History in one hour. No tricks. Just you and him." She disappeared with a crack of green lightening. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** More and more people just keep picking this up with each update-- it never fails to amaze me! (You know, I had originally thought that there would not be much audience for this story-- guess that's what I get for thinking when I'm not used to it.) At any rate, I'm going to do some reviewer responses for people who reviewed chapter 23:

**Anonymous 11-4-2004**- I can't see how someone would mistake Cole for Wes... oh wait, I can in some strange sense. (I do need to get a hobby.) But that was supposed to be humorous, so I'm glad you approve. I'm glad your liking the story. As to your other questions, I can't tell you that! It would spoil all the supense!

**Anonymous 11-3-2004**- Glad you like it! Updates will be coming regularly.

**cmar**- I probably did mean 'dematerialized' but my brain synapses disconnected and I wrote it incorrectly. I'll have to go back and fix that... But I am glad that you like where the story is going. (I had a huge debate about whether or not to bring Merrick in when I was originally doing the outline and, as you can see, the Merrick thing won.) Keep the great feedback coming!

**Funky In Fishnet**- Glad the intro of Merrick was believable. (The only Wild Force episode I've seen with him in it, he said precisely four words. Not exactly a great picture of his character.) So a lot of research went into him and I'm glad it paid off. :)

**Giannola**- We shall see what happens to all these people. :) I'm glad you like the story and keep the comments coming!

**jenny**- Believe it or not, I think Zordon actually might be 3000 years old. They say something about that in the first movie although I don't think it is specifically mentioned anywhere in the series. I'd have to watch the movie again! Thanks for the sweet review!

**Manders1953**- Merrick does have a gray streak going, but since it was a cursory glance of his looks, I didn't mention it. And the X-men things do seem to be abounding in this particular incarnation of Power Rangers, don't they? I'm glad you like the story!

**Satori Blackthorn**- I shall be keeping up with the regular updates. I know I hate it when I'm reading a story and really enjoying it, then the author doesn't update for months at a time or never finishes it. (Although I am guilty of the latter sometimes...) But I'm glad you like it!

**sayinjinj7**- Thanks! I'm updating on a regular basis now, so I hope I'm satisfying the demand!

**Warstock-Leonhart**- Welcome to the review board! Actually, Adam was the green Zeo and Turbo ranger (before he passed his Turbo powers on to Carlos.) I didn't want to make him green again. (And you know it ain't easy bein' green!) Originally, when my brother and I were coming up with the colors for the new gems and who would get each one (yes, that was a collective effort) we decided that Billy needed to be the green ranger. I'm not entirely sure what the reasoning behind it was, but the school colors with Adam worked well. And it stuck. As to Conner becoming part of the distress signal, I can't tell you that yet! :) But I am glad you reviewed and like the story!

**white time ranger**- Maybe... I don't know... I can't tell you that! Actually I can give you a definite maybe. Just keep in mind that the Time Force stuff revolving around Jen will have to be addressed at some point in time. Keep the good comments coming!


	25. Halfway There

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Twenty-Five: Halfway There**

"No way! You can't go there! It's suicide!"

Tommy looked sadly at Conner's outburst. For the better part of half an hour, him and the remaining Dino Thunder Rangers had been arguing about what to do about Mesogog's latest proposal. The reptile freak wanted to see Tommy alone. Probably had a strange grudge against him like Zeltrax had. Of course, no one was entirely sure what Mesogog's problem was other than that he wanted to turn the earth back to its prehistoric roots.

Unfortunately for him, most of the other rangers and Hayley supported Conner's view point. It was pretty much suicide for him to face Mesogog alone. But he didn't see any other way around the dilemma. Mesogog would just flee if others showed up with him and that would accomplish nothing. They needed to get rid of Mesogog once and for all.

"It may be suicide," Tommy said softly. "But what other choice do we have?"

"I want to know why Mesogog and his crew hates you so much in the first place," Kira stated, getting up from the crate she had been sitting on and pacing the lab. "What did you ever do to them?"

"I helped with the research that created them. Do they need a better reason?"

"Actually, they do have a better reason," Trent spoke up, his voice soft.

Six faces turned to face Trent. Kira stopped pacing and stared at him. "Trent? What do you know about all this?"

Trent stood up. "My father did some kind of experiment on himself when you guys were doing all that research. He is Mesogog."

That revelation was met with stunned silence. Tommy had to consciously keep himself from gaping at his student. Anton Mercer was Mesogog? How was that possible? First, he had thought Mercer died in that explosion by Mesogog's hand. Then Mercer reappeared. Suddenly, it all made sense. That was how Mercer survived, not because he had been lucky or a search team found him, but because he was Mesogog and Mesogog was the one who facilitated that explosion.

"Why didn't you tell us sooner?" he asked.

Trent looked pained, like he hadn't wanted to tell this in the first place. "My father asked me to help you. I don't think he wanted me to tell you he was Mesogog."

"Then there's got to be a way to negate the dinosaur half," Ethan said fervently.

The White Ranger shook his head. "No. Every time my father got close to a break through with that, Mesogog would come along and destroy his work."

"But if we kill the dinosaur half, we kill him," Conner replied.

"I know," Trent said sadly. "Maybe it's the only way."

"No," Tommy said firmly. "It is not the only way. Hayley, do you still have all of my notes from the island research?"

"Sure," she replied. "They're in the vault."

"It's time to break them out."

Twenty minutes later, his notes were spread out all over the floor and he, Hayley, Ethan and Billy were pouring over them. He was fairly certain that when he sent copies of his notes to Hayley, he had also included Mercer's notes. And if he sent Mercer's notes before that island exploded, then there had to be something here on what he ultimately did to himself.

"Got it!" Billy said suddenly. They crowded around him.

"That's easy enough," Hayley was saying.

"Yeah," Conner added. "But he has ten minutes to be there."

"All right," Tommy announced, shifting into leader mode. "I'll go to Mesogog and hold him off for as long as I can. Hayley, send someone the moment you have the antidote ready. Everyone else, take your zords and go destroy Mesogog's island fortress. We have to take care of this once and for all."

Everyone nodded. Tommy gave him a forced smile before he morphed and teleported to the Museum of Natural History. He hoped that he could hold off Mesogog long enough for Hayley to finish that serum.

* * *

"I've given Billy the coordinates for the Dragon-Zord. All you two need to do is follow the Dragon-Zord and you'll be at the right place."

"All right," Kira said into her communicator. Ethan echoed the sentiments.

She and Ethan along with Billy had volunteered to take their zords to the island fortress. It was the most logical thing, since they couldn't form the Megazord without Doctor O. Her zord was the Yellow Eagle and could fly to the island. Ethan had the Blue Shark and could, obviously, swim. The Dragon-Zord normally lived underwater. At the moment, it was doing a strange dog-paddle with Billy balanced on his head. Dark underwater currents indicated that the shark was following the Dragon-Zord at close range. She kept an eye on them, encouraging the eagle to stay just enough behind them to spot trouble.

Trent and Conner had stayed at the lab, mainly to take the antidote to Tommy when Hayley got it done. She understood why Trent wanted to help with that. Mesogog was his adopted father in some strange sense. None of the other rangers wanted to lose their parents, so why should Trent? She also imagined that Dr. Mercer would lighten up quite a bit once he no longer had to worry about Mesogog. All the same, she wanted what was best for Trent. He deserved so much more than the hard breaks he had suffered.

"You still with us, Kira?" Billy asked over the communication line.

"Yeah," she said. "I've got a clear view of the two of you."

"Good deal," the Green Ranger replied.

Kira smiled to herself as her zord soared over the open ocean. She could really get used to this zord. It was almost like an extension of herself in more ways than her Ptera-Zord had ever been. She just hoped that Conner didn't decide to ask any stupid questions while he and Trent were waiting in the lab. She had known for ages that Conner had a crush on her, but he just was not her type. Trent was. That was all there was to it. However, Conner tended to speak before he thought about what he was going to say. That got him into trouble more often than not. There were times she wished he were more like Ethan, just going with the flow. But then again, if any of them were any different, they probably would not be here right now.

"Whoa! That looks like the castle from _Super Ninja Space Wars_!" Ethan exclaimed. Kira had never played that particular game, but she supposed that his assumption was right. The island they were approaching had a very medieval looking castle sitting on top of it. It occurred to her that she had never seen the outside of Mesogog's fortress. All the times she had gotten into it had been through the invisi-portals.

"Looks more like the castle from _Willow_," Billy countered.

"_Willow_?" Kira asked.

"It's a 80s fantasy movie. It's pretty decent. It's got Warwick Davis in it."

"I'll have to check it out."

"Can we focus?" Ethan asked. "We do need to attack that fortress."

"All right," Billy said, taking charge. "Ethan, stay in the water and attack the base of the fortress as best you can. It will fall faster if the foundation is weak. Kira, take an aerial attack. Aim for the generators and signal towers. That will take out any defenses and power sources."

"What about you?" she asked.

"I'll take the ground. I can use the drill tail to take out anything in my way." He paused. "Let's do this!"

"All right!" Kira and Ethan said in unison.

She watched as the Dragon-Zord crawled out of the water and onto the land. The drill tail revved up and took out a stone formation nearest to it. The shark dived deeper into the water and the whole island suddenly shook. She steered her zord to the first generator she found. The zord fired on it and the generator went up in an explosion. She scanned the island again and found another generator. As she was aiming for it, she caught sight of a swarm of Tyranno-drones nearing the Dragon-Zord. The zord used its tail to bat them all away like flies. She almost laughed. That looked slightly comical. The generator she had just found exploded.

"Billy, watch out!" came Ethan's voice. "I'm firing again."

"Affirmative!"

The entire island shook again, presumably from the shark that was attacking from under the water. The Dragon-Zord continued to take out the drones that kept attacking it. Kira wondered at that. Why didn't Mesogog have better defenses on his island? Unless… taking out the generator on that battle royale island had disrupted his other power sources. Perhaps that was why he was taking a much more personal attack on them.

"Pull out, guys," Billy said. "If we all fire at once, that should be enough to destroy the fortress."

Kira steered the Yellow Eagle back out over the open water. She saw the dark form of the Blue Shark emerge from deep water several yards away from the island. The Dragon-Zord lumbered off the island and jumped back in the water with a terrific splash.

"Ready?" Billy asked. Upon the affirmative answers, he called, "Fire!"

The three zords fired at once. The explosion that followed was enough to shake the entire earth. Great orange clouds rose up and dissipated, leaving belching clouds of smoke that revealed the ruins of the fortress. Slowly, the island began to sink into the water. It was almost like the House of Usher sinking into the swamp.

"Hey! What's that?" Ethan asked.

A small female form could be seen waving frantically from the island. "It almost looks like Principal Randall," Kira replied.

"I think it is," Billy said slowly.

"Wait a minute!" Kira exclaimed. "Why would she be on that island unless…"

"Elsa!" Billy groaned. "Didn't you say that that cyborg female called herself Elsa?"

"Yeah…"

"Principal Elsa Randall?"

"Principal Randall was the cyborg? Why didn't any of us notice?"

"Should we rescue her or let her drown?" Ethan asked.

"We have more honor than the latter," Billy countered. "I'll pick her up, but if she goes psycho then it's to a watery grave."

"Sounds good," Kira agreed.

She watched as the Dragon-Zord reached out to the slowly sinking island and Principal Randall stepped onto its outstretched hand. She laughed as Billy left her in the hand and they turned and headed back for the lab. There appeared to be no way he was letting her up where he was perched on the thing's head. That was probably a mark that in addition to be being a sinister partner to an evil overlord, she was also a bad employer. She imagined that Billy would turn her over to the proper authorities when they got to land.

"Hayley," Billy said into the communication line. "Have a police unit meet us at the Reefside Harbor."

"Did you guys get the fortress?" Hayley asked.

"Yeah and we also found that cyborg woman who has been interrogating us and terrorizing us. Turns out she's also Principal Randall."

"I always knew there was something wrong with that woman," came Conner's voice.

Kira laughed to herself, as the zords flew smoothly (or swam smoothly) across the open ocean. If she had not been out here on a ranger mission, the flight would actually have seemed really peaceful. The ocean was a deep azure and the afternoon sun shone down, reflecting gold on the peaking waves.

In no time, they were back at the Reefside Harbor and two police cars were waiting for them. "Don't power down, guys," Billy said. "We'll hand over Randall and then get the zords back to the lab."

"Sounds good."

She watched from the Yellow Eagle as Billy, still powered up, handed Principal Elsa Randall to the authorities. They searched her and loaded her into a police car, before taking off with their sirens blazing. Well, it was good to know that they would be getting a new principal at school. Perhaps the new one would be better than the old one. Heck, anything was better than Principal Randall!

* * *

Tommy landed in front of the Museum of Natural History. The place seemed fairly quiet for a Tuesday afternoon, although, it seemed foreboding. Mesogog was sitting casually on a bench in front of the place. His hands were folded in his lap. He slowly stood up when Tommy appeared.

"You're late, Doctor Oliver," he said in his traditional low hiss. "I had expected you five minutes ago. You are lucky that I did not leave."

Tommy would have considered that very lucky, but didn't say so. "I know all about you now," he said in a deceptively steady voice. "Anton Mercer," he stressed the name.

Mesogog just gave him a mild look. "Anton Mercer is dead. He died when I was born."

"Then why do you still fight his reemergence?"

"He is weak. I am strong. Soon enough he will be gone forever."

Tommy noted the use of the present tense. "And your son? What about him?"

Mesogog growled. "That stupid boy betrayed me! He is no longer my son!"

"No…" he replied slowly. "But he is Anton Mercer's son."

The reptile creature just pulled a sword from his belt and held it in a ready position. "I have waited for this moment for a long time, Doctor Oliver."

"I don't want to hurt you," Tommy said softly. "I just want to bring back the Anton Mercer that I knew and respected."

Mesogog did not reply. He just lunged at Tommy with the sword. He rolled back his left shoulder to avoid the blow and pulled out his Brachio-Staff. He countered the next blow and rolled out of the way as Mesogog stabbed the sword blindly into the air. This was madness. He hated the creature before him, but couldn't bring himself to hurt him now that he knew the truth. Defense was his only advantage here. He wasn't angry. He was hurt and betrayed.

"Why me?" he asked as he blocked a blow to his shoulder, but doing a back-flip. "What do you have against me?"

Mesogog thrust his sword towards Tommy's abdomen, but he blocked the blow with his Brachio-Staff. "You are the only one who stands between me and my dream." He threw Tommy away from him and charged at him with the sword. Tommy rolled to the right and the sword struck the concrete. "You and those gems!"

The reptile-man hauled his to his feet by his arm and threw him against the Plexiglas that was the doors to the museum. The stuff splintered at his weight, but didn't break. Tommy slid down the doors and fell to a heap on the ground. Using his Brachio-Staff as a support, he slowly dragged himself to his feet.

"You were once good," Tommy said, clutching his left shoulder which had taken the brunt of his crash into the doors. "What happened?"

"I am good," Mesogog replied, advancing on him with his sword drawn high. "I am taking away the complicated petty life that humans have made and giving them back the simple life that existed before all of this!" He waved a hand to indicate the museum.

"Yeah, but don't you use all those things to create your utopia." He paused. "In my book, that's defined as a hypocrite!"

Mesogog hissed and lifted the sword to strike him. Tommy held up his Brachio-Staff and deflected the blow at the last moment. Using his staff to brace the sword, he dodged from in between Mesogog and the wall, leading the battle to an open space that gave him more freedom.

"Brachio-Staff! Land strike!" he commanded and pointed the staff at the ground. Immediately, a minor shaking of the earth occurred. Mesogog jumped away from it just before it hit him.

"You'll have to do better than that, Doctor Oliver," the reptile taunted.

Tommy didn't dare do anything else for fear that Mesogog would be accidentally destroyed and then Anton Mercer would be lost forever. He slowly backed away from the reptile, his staff held in front of him. His left shoulder ached horribly. 'Hayley!' he thought. 'Hurry! I can't hold out much longer!'

Mesogog advanced on him and reaching out with his free hand, grabbed Tommy around the throat and threw him into a nearby bench. Tommy was stunned for a moment, but dragged himself into a sitting position on the bench. Mesogog calmly walked towards him.

"Goodbye, Doctor Oliver," he said in a mocking sad voice.

"I don't think so!"

Tommy turned and saw Conner and Trent, morphed, running towards them. Trent held a large syringe in his hand. Conner had called out his Tyranno-Staff and brandished it as they came forward. Mesogog barely had time to deflect Conner's first blow, as Conner jumped into action. Tommy forced himself to stand, further distracting Mesogog.

The reptile pushed Conner back and Tommy blocked the sword with his staff. It didn't matter where Trent had gone, they needed to distract him long enough for Trent to inject him. Mesogog blocked Tommy with one hand and threw Conner against a wall of the museum. That forced Conner to power down. Before Tommy knew it, he was flying through the air as well and landed next to Conner. He felt himself power down. Mesogog walked in front of them, his sword held in a ready position.

"I came here to destroy one ranger, so I suppose two for the price of one is all right." He lifted the sword. Tommy instinctively covered his face with his arms, but he soon found that there had been no need.

Mesogog froze with his sword, raised over his head. He was screeching an unearthly tone and dropped the sword. The reptile-man convulsed and landed on his knees. That revealed Trent standing behind him, still morphed, with an empty syringe. Tommy forced himself to his feet and helped Conner up. Mesogog had become still, making no noise. The three of them watched in amazement as the tall reptile seemed to shrink and the scales disappeared revealing fair skin and blonde hair.

Slowly, the man began to moan and writhe some. "Power down," Trent said and leaned over to help the man stand. Tommy and Conner reached out to help as the three of them hauled Anton Mercer to his feet.

He looked pale and shaky, his suit rumpled. "What happened?" he asked slowly and then took sight of all of them. "Tommy? Trent?"

"It's a long story," Tommy replied with a smile.

"Dad," Trent said in a half-strangled voice. Anton turned to his adopted son and pulled him into his arms. Trent clung to him like a frightened child, his shoulders shaking. Tommy suspected that the teen was crying. But then again, he had been slightly younger than them when becoming a ranger. In many ways, they were still children at heart. He smiled as TJ pulled up to the museum in his car and all them piled in. This was going to take some explaining.

* * *

"Up there!" Adam said, pointing to a small clearing in the trees ahead.

Wes felt his heart constrict slightly as he pushed ahead of Adam and ran towards the clearing. It had taken them too long to get this far. Heart in his throat, he dashed into the clearing and immediately saw what he was looking for—Jen… She was lying on the ground, still. He gasped and ran to her, barely aware that Carter was not far from her.

"Jen," he whispered.

She didn't move. Adam was next to them in a minute, feeling for a pulse. "She's got a pulse," Adam said. "But we need to hurry." He held his communicator to his mouth. "Hayley, we need Life Flight here right now!"

Wes gently smoothed back Jen's hair, taking in the blood that had dried next to her ear, making it appear like she had been hit in the head. He glanced sideways and saw the mangled state that Carter was in—especially his leg. He suppressed another gasp.

"He's got a pulse too," Adam was telling Kimberly, who was sitting next to Carter.

Hot tears stung his eyes and spilled down his cheeks as they sat with Jen and Carter and waited for the Life Flight helicopters to arrive. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Thanks for all the reviews y'all! I know that my interpretation of their reaction to Trent confessing that his father is Mesogog doesn't gel with the series, but this is AU. I didn't particularly like how they reacted on the series... At any rate, thanks for all the support, keep it coming! --EK


	26. Take My Hand

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Twenty-Six: Take My Hand**

Wes slowly went into the hallway out of the operating room. Jen had been in there for over an hour—the doctors were trying to determine the extent of her injuries and what the damage had done. He had been in there with her, firmly believing that she needed a familiar presence. However, the doctor had told him to go out for a while and get some coffee and some air. Her condition was stable, but it would be a while before they knew anything. He pressed his back to the wall and slid down to a sitting position. He pulled his knees to his chest like he had done so many times when he had been upset when he was little. He dug around in his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. He had been one of the lucky ones who left his cell phone in his bedding and it was still intact when he got off the island.

With trembling fingers, he dialed the number for his father, his childhood home. When the Time Force Rangers had gone back to the future, he had been forced to moved out of the destroyed clock tower, but had not gone back home. Instead, he found an apartment in Silver Hills and had been staying there ever since. The first time he had taken money from his father in a long time had been to finance this red ranger trip.

The phone rang twice before some picked it up. "Hello?" came his father's voice.

Wes nearly started crying at the sound of the familiar voice. It brought back so many memories of childhood, most of them having to do with comfort. His mother had died when he was little and his father, while stern and clear about his ambitions for his son, had allowed him to do pretty much what he thought was best for himself.

"Dad…" he choked out, trying to control himself.

"Wes?" his father asked. "What's wrong? I thought you were going to Reefside to help out an old friend."

That was another thing about his father. The man always seemed to be able to tell when he was truly upset or when he was just rebelling. Tears began to slip down his cheeks, unchecked. Sobs racked his entire body as he struggled to get the words out.

"Wes, calm down," his father said in a soothing voice. "What's wrong?"

"It's Jen…" he said between sobs.

"Jen? I thought she went back to the future?"

"No…" That brought on a whole new wave of sorrow. His bit his lower lip, trying to control himself, but it was a battle he was destined to lose. Jen… his father knew exactly where she had gone. But he had never stopped caring about her in the first place. If it were possible, his feelings for her had grown with her absence. His father was silent on the other end, but the silence was reassuring. It showed infinite patience. "No…" he repeated. "She's hurt. The doctors don't know if she's going to wake up."

With those words finally out and his worst fears confirmed in language, he broke down completely, letting the racking sobs take hold of him.

"Wes, Wes," his father said. "I'm coming out there. What hospital are you at?"

"Reefside General."

"Just hang on," his father reassured him. "I'll be there in an hour." His father paused. "We'll get this straightened out. I love you, son."

Wes sniffed violently, desperately trying to regain some control on his emotions. "I love you too, Dad," he whispered.

His father disconnected the call and Wes shoved his cell phone back in his pocket, burying his face in his arms. He didn't feel the slightest inclination to move and no one prompted him to. Nurses, patients and other family members walked past and he took no notice of them. Jen had been ripped away from him and the doctors still didn't know anything about the seriousness of her state. Soon, he had cried himself out and just sat there with an aching throat, itchy eyes, a running nose and a completely wiped out body.

He didn't know how long it had been before he felt a presence beside him. He looked up and saw his father sitting there with him. An incoherent noise bubbled up from the back of his throat as his father just opened his arms to him. Not caring that he looked like a child once more, he clung to his father, allowing himself to be held as his tears started all over again. The familiar arms and presence soothed his aching spirit like a balm. In a short while, his tears stopped and his father was just holding him.

"Are you the family of Jennifer Scotts?"

Wes jerked himself out of his stupor and scrambled to his feet, his father close behind him. "I'm her fiancée," he replied. "This is my father."

The doctor nodded, but he looked sad. Wes' felt his entire body constrict with panic once more. His father clapped a hand on his shoulder, sensing that he was on the brink of losing his composure once more. "What's the report, Doctor…?" his father asked with an air of authority that he picked up when around doctors, lawyers and businessmen.

"Doctor Christians," the doctor replied. "I'm the staff neurologist here and was called in especially for the case of Miss Scotts."

"And?" Wes prompted him, not at all happy with the delays.

"Perhaps you should come to my office," he suggested.

Wes was about to refuse, but felt a slight pressure on his shoulder from his father and dutifully followed the doctor to a small, but comfortable office off the hallway. The doctor rounded his desk and sat down, motioning for them to sit down in two plush chairs situated in front of the desk. Wes almost fell down and stared at the doctor. He was putting the desk in between them in case he went neurotic. Wes knew this scenario—it happened all the time in books and movies, the doctors only called one to his office if the news was bad. His father sat down, retaining the air of authority and dignity all the while.

"Jen has sustained massive head injuries," the doctor said. "We've done emergency surgery that has relieved pressure on her brain from one of the injuries."

"She's alive?" Wes asked, his heart soaring with the small flame of hope.

"Yes," the doctor replied. "However, to put it bluntly, she's in a coma."

All the hope that had taken him soaring to the highest heights brought him crashing down and burning up. "A-a coma?" he stammered.

"Yes. However, she's breathing on her own and still has reflexes enough to be fed."

"Is she going to come out of it?" his father asked.

"It's hard to say. She could be in it a few days or for the rest of her life."

"Have you done everything you can?" his father further questioned.

The doctor nodded. "She's not on life support. She's alive, but none responsive."

"I see." His father stood up. "Of course, I shall want a second opinion from another neurologist and I want her transferred to a suite in this hospital."

"A second opinion?" the doctor asked, astounded. "But the results will be the same!"

"I don't care. I want a second opinion. Now!" he emphasized the last word. "What room do you have her in now?"

The doctor named a room number and his father gently took his arm, forcing him to stand up and leave the small office that had become stuffy. He didn't really want to go anywhere, but allowed himself to be led. His father led him out to the waiting room and sat him down in one of the chairs.

"Wait here," he said. "I'm going to see about having her put in another room right now." His father turned towards the nurses' station and disappeared.

Wes just sat there, feeling numb. Jen was in a coma… but that doctor didn't know how long the coma would last, her whole life or a few days. A strangled sob came out of his throat. No… this was not happening. He buried his face in his hands and cried.

* * *

Mr. Collins had taken over everything going on at the hospital. Along with Anton Mercer, the two of them had heard the bare bones story, Mr. Collins barely blinking at the fact that his son and his friends were Power Rangers. Then Mr. Collins had ordered a thorough examination of everyone who had been on that island, especially Kendrix who was fuzzy on whether or not she had been injected with something and Ashley who had just had a baby. Mr. Collins then spent some time with the doctors who had been working on Carter. They wanted to amputate Carter's shattered leg, but Mr. Collins just ordered them to get a second opinion from a second orthopedic surgeon and quick.

There was something almost awe-inspiring about two men who were millionaires ordering about a hospital and getting the best of everything for everyone. Tommy was content to just let the man take over, remembering how he had taken down first and last names of everyone involved. And everyone, including Mary Anne and Susie, were at the hospital now. That was upwards of twenty people and neither millionaire batted an eyelash. Merrick had remained at the house, promising to hold down the fort and take inventory of the kitchen.

And Mesogog was gone, his island fortress and his plan. Elsa, who it turned out had been Principal Randall, was in jail. The authorities were still wondering where Mesogog, himself was, but none of them were about to say anything. The Anton Mercer that Tommy had known and worked with on that island years ago was back and that, in and of itself, was refreshing. It was good to feel at ease once more.

Right now, Mr. Collins wanted the details on Cole and baby Karone. He had Andros telling him all the insurance and license plate details he could remember along with the year, model and make of his car. Soon, the man was on the phone with the police, asking about the car. He hung up with them after a few moments.

"They've found your car," Mr. Collins said. "But it was empty and abandoned off of I-5." He paused. "It's in the impound lot and you can get it back."

Andros leaned back and pinched the bridge of his nose. Ashley was in the examination room going through multiple tests. "So we're no closer to finding them?"

"I wouldn't say that."

Mr. Collins and Andros looked up as Eric came into the waiting room where Mr. Collins had been holding court. He had several bandages on his left arm and looked like someone had just told him he had to get twenty rabies' shots. Among other things, Mr. Collins had ordered tetanus shots for all of them.

"Why?" Mr. Collins asked, looking levelly at Eric. Tommy couldn't tell if the man didn't like him or just used that tone of voice with everyone.

"I gave Cole Wes' credit card before he left. If he's smart, he used it to charge for hotel rooms and such." Eric sat down with them, clutching subconsciously at his arm.

In a flash, Mr. Collins was back on his cell phone, telling a credit card company to fax a copy of charges from the last two weeks to the hospital. Soon, a nurse brought over several sheets of paper to them. Mr. Collins grabbed them and studied them. He pointed to the last charge on the list and showed it to them. It showed a charge for a room at a really ritzy hotel in LA. Mr. Collins smiled.

"Eric, Andros," he said. "Let's get going and see if Mr. Evans is still there." He paused and looked to Tommy. "If Mercer or Ashley come through here, let them know where we've gone." The three men left the waiting room and disappeared through the doors.

Tommy leaned back, watching the throng of Power Rangers, both current and former coming in and out of various examining rooms. He watched a couple come through the main doors, see him and come straight for him. He looked at them. This had to be Conner's parents. Kira and Ethan's parents had arrived only minutes earlier.

"Are you Doctor Oliver?" the woman asked.

He nodded. "You must be Conner's parents."

"Where is Conner?" Mrs. McKnight asked.

"He's in one of the examining rooms. He'll be out soon." He paused. "Why don't you sit down?"

Mrs. McKnight collapsed onto the couch and her husband sat down beside her. She looked exhausted with worry. "You don't know how worried we've been!" she said, looking more and more tired. "He never just disappears like that!"

Mr. McKnight gave Tommy a piercing look. "I think we deserve an explanation about what has been going on with our son."

Tommy nodded, knowing how their panic had been. "I know. This is going to sound ridiculous, but…" he paused, deciding that the blunt approach would be best. "Your son is the red ranger on the current Power Ranger team," he finished, glad that there were no nurses or civilians around to hear that.

Conner's father's eyes widened and his mother gasped.

"That's why he left home Thursday night and didn't come back."

"Where has he been?" his mother whispered.

"Well, he was at my house Thursday night like he told you. Then we all got abducted by Mesogog and were put in a battle royale island. We got off of that Saturday and he has been at my house ever since."

"Oh my God," Mrs. McKnight gasped. "I had no idea…"

"He wasn't supposed to tell anyone," Tommy explained. "That is part of being a ranger. Each one is sworn to secrecy about their identity."

"Why are you telling us now?" Mr. McKnight asked.

"Mesogog is gone. We are no longer active rangers."

"We?"

Tommy shrugged. "I'm a ranger on the team too."

The McKnights looked stunned beyond belief. He didn't blame them. If he had been under the impression that his son was a mediocre high school student who played soccer, he'd be shocked too to learn that the very same son was a Power Ranger, one of the ones who had been protecting the city from horrors unheard of.

The main doors were thrown open once again and three kids entered. One appeared to be either in her late teens or early twenties. The younger girl was maybe in junior high. The boy, however, had to be Conner's identical twin, Eric, the one that Conner talked about the most.

"Mom!" the older girl called out. "Where's Conner? We got here as fast as we could."

"He'll be out in a moment," Mrs. McKnight told her other children as they clustered around her. Over the next few minutes, Tommy learned that the older girl was named Erin and the younger girl was named Constance.

"Mom?"

The family and Tommy turned to see Conner coming into the waiting room, looking extremely confused. There was a split second of hesitation before every last member of the family had descended upon Conner and were hugging and kissing him. Conner looked embarrassed at all the attention, even if it was from his nuclear family. His mother soon had him sitting in her lap on the couch with the rest of the family around them. Conner flushed at being treated like a four-year-old, but allowed his mother to do it anyways.

"You are grounded indefinitely!" his mother said in between smoothing his messy hair and kissing his cheek.

"Aw, Mom!" Conner groaned.

"Irene," Mr. McKnight said. "He is a Power Ranger."

"You're a Power Ranger!" Eric exclaimed. "No fair!"

"I don't care," his mother replied. "He scared me to death!"

Tommy just smiled at the scene. It was really what he would have expected from anyone's family at this point in time. He thought of his own relatives and realized that they would have been behaving in the same way in the given situation, especially his mother.

* * *

Andros was silent as Mr. Collins drove him and Eric into LA to search for Cole and Karone in a last ditch effort before they brought in the police. He knew why Eric was here—the Quantum Ranger had affection for Cole in the way that one has affection for a younger brother. He'd never admit it, but he really liked the 'kid.' Andros felt slightly ill as the city came closer and closer. He had not known where his newborn daughter was since Friday. It was a long time to go without knowing anything. Even with everything that he and Ashley had been through since then, their primary thought had been about Karone and where her and Cole were. For two days they had been trying to call Cole's cell phone to no avail.

"We'll be there in about ten minutes," Mr. Collins said to no one in particular.

His hands were shaking. Andros tried to control it, but lost the battle. He had not been to LA often unless he had to for business, but the large city had always frightened him in some way that he could not identify. It seemed like hours before those ten minutes ticked away and they were pulling into the hotel parking lot.

An ambulance was outside the hotel and someone was being loaded into it. Another paramedic appeared to be holding a baby. Andros' stomach contracted with panic as he dashed from the car, with Eric and Mr. Collins on his heels.

"What's going on?" he asked the nearest paramedic.

"Sir," she said forcefully, but politely. "I'll have to ask you to step away."

Andros caught sight of the baby that one of the other paramedics was holding. Recognition washed over him. "Karone!" he called.

"Sir-" the paramedic started again, but was cut off by Mr. Collins.

"Who are these people?" he asked. Whatever it was about Mr. Collins, it commanded attention. The paramedic must have decided he looked like a lawyer who could level a potential lawsuit, because she answered quickly.

"The young man has been identified as Cole Evans," she said. "He's got a dangerously high fever and is unconscious right now."

"And the baby?" Mr. Collins questioned further.

"She was found with him. The hospital bracelet on her wrist said 'Karone Hammond.' We're taking her to the hospital to do some checks and find her parents."

"We're the next of kin for them," Mr. Collins said quickly. "This young man," he said, clapping a hand on Andros' shoulder, "is the baby's father." He glanced at Eric. "We are family friends of Cole."

Andros started for the paramedic holding his daughter, not wanting her to be with these pretentious people any longer. However, the paramedic they had been talking to tried to prevent him. "I can't let you over there," the woman replied.

Angrily, Andros reached into his wallet and pulled out his driver's license. It read 'Andros Hammond,' since they didn't have last names on KO 35, he had taken Ashley's once they moved to Earth and married. "I am her father!" he yelled at the lady. "Do you want to do a paternity test or some garbage like that?"

Mr. Collins gently held him back from bodily throwing the woman aside and taking his daughter back by force. "Miss," he said politely. "If you do not let this man have his child this moment, I will have a lawsuit over your head so large that you will not know where it begins or where it ends."

She gulped audibly and let Andros past her to Karone. He took her gently from the paramedic's arms and gently cradled her against his chest. All the possessions that Cole had in the hotel room with him were on the curb. His daughter slept on unaware of the insanity that was going on around her. He turned to see Mr. Collins arguing with another paramedic. Eric had gotten in the ambulance with Cole. He heard the words 'negligence' and 'lawsuit' come from the paramedic.

"There will be no lawsuit!" Mr. Collins roared. "This young man and his wife had to give their child to Mr. Evans for her safety. It is not their fault that Mr. Evans took ill when the baby was still in his charge."

"Even so, sir-"

"That is the end of it!" Mr. Collins boomed. He walked over to Andros and motioned for him to get in the ambulance. "Karone needs to be checked out," he said gently. "You ride with her in ambulance. I'll follow in the car and inform Ashley that you are on you're way."

"Thank you," he said softly, still unwilling to hand his daughter over to the unfeeling touch of the paramedics.

"See you in a few moments," Mr. Collins said as he strode back to the car.

Andros climbed into the ambulance with Karone, Cole was unconscious on the other stretcher, an IV hooked up to his arm. He sent a 'thank you' to him mentally and gently laid his daughter on the other stretcher. She began to cry when the paramedics started their initial examination of her. He just wanted to get to the hospital away from these people. He sighed, realizing that on top of all of this, someone needed to call Dana. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Wow! The reviews from the last chapter knocked my socks off! I'm glad that everyone has been liking the story and the huge climax of finally taking out Mesogog. Now, we enter the stage where all the loose ends must be wrapped up. Thanks for sticking with me throughout this entire thing... it's kind of sad that this fic is now winding down. Cheers! --EK


	27. the Rift Between Heaven and Hell

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Twenty-Seven: the Rift Between Heaven and Hell**

Dana Grayson had not heard from her husband in exactly one week. For the first few days, she had told herself that he was just busy with whatever was happening across the country in Reefside. Then the worry and panic began to set in and it became a challenge for her to take the kids to daycare and go about her normal routine at work. She had tried calling both his cell phone and Tommy's house, but got no answer. Then she had resorted to all the other phone numbers she happened to have for the others she believed were there. The results had been much the same. So when she received a phone call from Leo earlier today, she had been both relieved and more panicked. She remembered the conversation verbatim.

She had just arrived home from work with Cory and Heather. The kids were sitting in the living room playing before dinner when the phone had rung. Between her already heightened state of panic and the fact that she was trying to fix dinner, it had been hard for her to answer the phone and balance everything else.

"Hello?" she had asked.

"Hey, Dana," a familiar voice came. "It's Leo."

That had put all thoughts of fixing dinner out of her mind immediately and put her full attention into the phone call. "Leo!" she had said, almost too eagerly. "What's going on?"

"Carter's in the hospital," he had explained.

That sent her plummeting into an imaginary world where all kinds of horrible things had happened to her husband. She had clutched the phone, black spots dancing before her eyes and the kids' noise becoming a mere hum in the background. "Is he all right?" she had whispered.

"According to the doctors, he's going to make a full recovery, but it will be slow."

"Thank God," she had breathed.

"But this is what I'm really calling about—Mr. Collins wants you and the kids to fly out here immediately. He has tickets waiting for you at the airport and he'll have a limo at the Reefside Airport to bring you guys directly to the hospital."

Dana hadn't even thought twice. She was already calculating the fastest way to pack herself and the kids, feed them and get to the airport. "When's the flight?" she had asked.

"Eight your time," Leo replied.

She looked at the clock in the kitchen. It was already almost six. She was going to have to hurry if they wanted to make the flight at all.

"Your tickets will be at the counter," Leo added. "I'll see you then."

He disconnected the call and Dana hung up the phone. She did not have a moment to spare. If she hurried, she could get them packed and to the airport with enough time to get a bite to eat before their flight. Faster than she could have ever thought possible with a three-year-old and an eighteen month old, she had packed them the bare essentials, figuring that most things, if forgotten, could be purchased in Reefside.

"Where're we goin', Mama?" Cory had asked as she strapped him and Heather in the backseat of the car.

"To Reefside to see Daddy," she had replied.

"Ooo," Cory said with wonder in his small eyes. "That's in that big state far away!"

"Uh huh," she replied. "You have to be extra good, because we're going on an airplane to get there. You'll need to help take care of your sister."

"Okay," the small boy had said with a large grin. Dana had smiled at him before getting in the driver's seat and driving as fast as she dared to the airport. Cory reminded her so much of Carter… he was the exact image of his father and had serious moments that were exact duplicates of the ones Carter had. The little boy was a constant reminder of her husband when he was away.

Rush hour traffic slowed them down and she barely got to the airport, got the tickets and their baggage checked, got the kids some food before it was time to board the plane. Cory had immediately claimed the seat by the window, even though it was dark and he wouldn't be able to see much. Heather, whose bedtime it was, fell asleep after a brief crying spell when the plane took off. Cory soon followed suite and the two children slept the entire way to Reefside.

It seemed like an eternity before they were finally in Reefside. Dana had to carry the sleeping Heather and dragged along a half-asleep Cory. Neither child was very happy with being forced to move, but it was a necessity. She soon found the bag that she had packed all of their clothing in and, trying to balance Heather, the diaper sack, her purse and the suitcase along with dragging Cory, found the waiting limo, just like Leo had promised.

"Let me get that for you, Mrs. Grayson," the driver had said, relieving her of all the bags except her purse and ushering her and the kids into the limo.

Heather remained asleep the entire time in the limo, but the novelty kept Cory up and staring at all the new sights in the strange city. Soon enough, the driver pulled up in front of the local hospital. Leo was standing outside waiting for them.

"Hey, Dana!" he said with a smile, kissing her cheek and taking the suitcase and diaper sack from her as she carried Heather in one arm and held Cory's hand with the other.

"Hey, Leo," she replied. "Where's Carter?"

"Follow me," he said.

"Hi, Uncle Leo," Cory stated belatedly.

Leo laughed, looking down at the small boy. "Hey, squirt," he replied. She followed him down the hallway and soon they came across Kendrix sitting in the waiting area in front of a room. Kendrix smiled and took Heather from her.

"We'll take the kids to the hotel," she said with an easy smile.

"Thanks," she said, grateful that Cory's godparents were willing to help them. She leaned down and kissed Cory's forehead. "Be good," she said. Cory just gave her one of his signature grins and grabbed Leo's hand as the Corbetts led them down the hallway and out of sight. Dana took a deep breath and entered Carter's room.

What she saw there made her gasp. Tears began to run unchecked as she moved across the room to her husband and gently took his hand. Carter looked like he had been blown apart and sewn back together. Bandages wrapped around his chest and she could see braces there to keep his rib cage from moving too much. He was in a neck brace and both his wrists were in braces—usually used for a sprain. One of his legs was in a cast up past his knee. He had an IV in his left arm and both his eyes were blackened.

"Oh, Carter," she breathed to his still, sleeping form. She gently brushed his hair away from his forehead, more in the way that he normally parted his hair, and planted a kiss on his forehead. "I'm here," she whispered. Squeezing his hand as tightly as she dared, she went around to the end of his bed and picked up his chart, reading through it quickly. There were recommendations there for his leg to be amputated and then a record of detailed reconstructive surgery as the amputation advocate had been overruled. He had extensive broken bones and sprained bones, along with suffering at least one concussion. The records showed a deep cut across his back, but no damage to his spine. No wonder Leo had told her that the recovery would take a while. He would have to be in physical therapy to get over a lot of these breaks. The IV was what was keeping him asleep and the doctor had recommended to let him wake up tomorrow morning.

Wiping at the tears that blurred her vision, she pulled a chair close to his bed and gently took his hand. "I'll be here when you wake up," she said softly.

* * *

Carter groaned and squeezed his eyes shut. The light was unusually bright. He could hear soft voices talking somewhere far off. He blinked against the bright light and tried to open his eyes completely. Where was he?

"Morning, Carter!"

He turned his head slightly to the left and saw Dana sitting by his bedside. Dana? He looked around and realized that he must be in a hospital somewhere. Then the events came flooding back to him—being beaten by Mesogog's minions.

"Dana?" he said weakly, his voice harsh and dry. He tried to sit up but was immediately plagued by a pain that seemed to rip through his whole body. Dana immediately moved to help him get into a semi-sitting position. He smiled at her and tugged her towards him with one of his braced hands. She gingerly allowed him to hold her for a moment.

She moved away from him, a tender smile on her face. "Hey there," she said softly.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Wes found you on that island," she replied, as if someone had told her all of this. "You were Life Flight-ed here."

"And Jen?"

Dana shook her head. "She's in a coma," she said softly. "The doctors don't know if she'll ever come out of it."

Carter fell silent. That had happened to Jen because she had been trying to help him, when he had already been injured.

"Carter, don't brood about it," Dana reprimanded him. "Jen would be happy to know that you're all right."

"I know," he replied softly. "Are the kids here?"

Dana smiled and nodded. "They're outside with Leo and Kendrix. Want me to go get them?" He nodded and she got up and went to the door of the room. Seconds later, Cory bounded into the room, followed by a tottering Heather. Leo and Kendrix brought up the rear. Cory ran up to the edge of his bed and stood on his tiptoes. Dana gently lifted him up and the little boy settled himself, sitting next to his father. Carter ignored the pain in his ribs. His family was here and that was all he needed. Cory didn't say anything, he just sat next to him. And that was the way it was between him and his son—they didn't need words to communicate.

He looked up at Kendrix as Dana sat Heather on her lap in the chair. "Are you all right?" he asked the Pink Galaxy Ranger.

Kendrix blushed slightly and nodded, her hands going over her stomach even though she wasn't showing. It had become a well-known fact over those on the island that Kendrix was pregnant and had been placed somewhere else by Mesogog. Leo wrapped an arm around his wife. "Yes," Kendrix replied, smiling. "Apparently they didn't inject me like they thought they had."

"We owe a lot to Mr. Collins," Leo added. "He's taken care of all of this."

Carter just nodded. All seemed to be right with the world once more. He briefly thought to ask about Ashley and Andros and everything involved with that.

"Cole has fever," Kendrix said. "But his temperature is back to normal and the doctors are confident he's going to make a full recovery. And Karone is fine along with her parents."

Carter smiled and carefully wrapped an arm around his son. He was glad that he was still alive and would be fine with time.

* * *

Cole groaned as the sunlight poured through the window. He felt like a million bucks—green and wrinkled. A pinching sensation was coming from his arm and he had a strong urge to just rip away whatever was pinching him. He opened his eyes and saw an IV in his arm. Oh God… he resisted the urge to rip it out. He hated needles. He looked across from his bed, realizing he had to be in a hospital. Eric was sitting in his room and… Alyssa?

"Alyssa!" was the first thing that came out of his mouth and he realized just how ridiculous it sounded. Of course it was Alyssa and both her and Eric knew that.

She smiled at the sound of his voice as they both turned to him. "You're awake!" she replied, crossing the room to him. She gently leaned over him to give him a hug and planted a firm kiss on his lips. He held her awkwardly with one arm, trying to keep the arm with the needle as far away from him as possible.

"Get a room, guys," Eric muttered.

"I thought this was a room," Alyssa retorted at him. "Besides, you'd be doing the same thing if Taylor were here."

"She is not my girlfriend!" Eric said emphatically, using the book he had been reading as an indicator of the veracity of his statement.

"And the only reason she's flying out here this afternoon is because…" Alyssa let the statement trail off. Eric glared at her and went back to reading the book. Cole laughed at the pair of them.

He suddenly realized how weak he felt. He looked up at Alyssa as she pulled her chair over the side of his bed. "What happened?" he asked her.

"You've had a really high fever," Alyssa replied. "But the doctors say you're over the worst of it and you'll be fine."

"And Kaye?"

Alyssa gave him a searching look, before realization dawned on her. "She's fine. In fact, her parents will probably want to know you're awake."

"Forget that," Eric said interrupting them. "Think you can walk, kid?" he asked.

Cole wasn't sure, but he nodded anyways.

"Good. We've got a red ranger meeting in Carter's room in five minutes."

"Why in Carter's room?" Cole asked. "What happened to him?"

Eric rolled his eyes. "The short story is, he can barely move." He paused. "Let's go. It'll take you five minutes to get down the hallway."

Cole shrugged as Alyssa helped him get into a bathrobe, with one arm off for the sake of the IV, and slippers. He then shakily stood up, leaning heavily on Alyssa and Eric as they slowly made their way down the hallway and into Carter's room. The room looked like everyone had decided to congregate in there. Carter looked like he should have been in a body cast for all the casts he had on. Cole looked around as Alyssa sat him in a chair with the IV on a spiffy rolling thing next to him. The others of the nine red rangers who were part of the distress signal were there. Eric sat down next to Cole. The Wild Force Ranger quickly took in the faces all around him. Most looked normal, except for Wes who looked sad and haunted. Cole didn't have time to dwell on it, because Tommy started the meeting.

"We are here to decide if Conner McKnight should be allowed to join the red ranger distress signal group," he said. "All for it say 'aye'."

There was a loud cry of 'aye!'

"All opposed say 'nay'."

There was not a single sound heard in the room.

"All right," Tommy said. "The motion passes." He went out to the hallway and told Conner that he could come in. The young red ranger came in, grinning from ear to ear. The others dispersed except for him and Jason and Carter's family came back in. He quickly programmed Conner's contact information in his cell phone, giving Conner his in case some of it changed. (Eric explained that he had taken the liberty of buying a new charger for Cole's cell phone and charged the thing.) Jason gave Conner his information and took down Conner's.

"Welcome to the distress signal, kid!" Jason said after they explained to him that if the distress signal were activated, Cole would call him and he would, in turn, call Jason.

Jason and Conner went off, as Alyssa came back in and helped him get back to his own room. She gently settled him back in bed and tucked the covers around him.

"Are you tucking me in?" he asked, playfully.

"Of course," she replied with a smile. "Someone's got to take care of you and it might as well be me."

"When I called you," he started, his eyes already drooping shut. "What were you going to tell me?"

Alyssa smiled and leaned close to him. "That I love you too." She gently pressed her lips to his and he held onto the sweet, soft kiss as long as he could. She sat next to him on the bed, gently stroking his messy hair and lulling him to sleep. He didn't know when it was that he finally fell asleep, but when he woke up, she was beside him. He smiled to himself knowing that this was right. This was where he needed to be.

* * *

Wes wandered back down the hallway to Jen's room after the red ranger meeting. He didn't really care in the long run whether or not Conner was a part of the distress signal. He felt like a dark cloud had settled over him and nothing was going to lift it. The others' lives were going back to normal. His would never be normal again. First of all, he wasn't going back to a solitary life in Silver Hills. He had thought he would be going back to life with Jen and he was, but she was in a coma and non-responsive.

He entered her room. She was still, just she had been when he left her. She wasn't going to stay like this. There had to be some hope for her. He choked back a sob that was rising in the back of his throat. It wasn't fair!

"Hey."

He turned quickly to see Conner entering the room. "Hey Conner," he said flatly. "Did you need something?"

"No," he said softly. "I just came to say 'I'm sorry'." He paused. "About Jen. I didn't know her very well, but I liked her."

"She was a likable person," he replied.

"Don't say 'was'!" Conner said sharply. "She's alive! She was a determined person from what I saw of her. I mean she came back on a time ship illicitly just to be with you. She'll make it out of this! I know she will!"

Wes smiled at Conner's fervent statements. "Thanks, Conner," he said softly, clapping a hand on the teen's shoulder. Conner returned the gesture with a smile.

"Anytime," he replied. He glanced at the clock in the room. "I've got to go," he said with a grimace. "I'm grounded until further notice, as my mother told me."

"She grounded you?"

Conner shrugged. "Just because she was scared. She'll get over it. I had to get my older sister to drive me over here because my mom took away my car."

Wes just smiled and shook his head. "Take care, Conner."

"You too, Wes," he replied, leaving the room.

Wes sighed and pulled a chair over to the edge of Jen's bed. Even though her hair had been cut off at odd angles for the surgery, she still looked beautiful. Hell, those doctors could have shaved her head and she would still look good. Even from the first time they met and she berated him about being irresponsible and that his descendent, Alex, would never be like that, he had thought she was beautiful and looked even more so when she got mad.

"Hey, son."

His thoughts were interrupted as his father entered the room. He didn't reply as his father came to stand next to him.

"I was thinking," his father said slowly. "I can have Jen moved back to Silver Hills with care at home." He paused. "It might be easier for both of you if you came home."

Wes nodded, knowing that his father was right. His apartment was no place for someone in a coma and there were facilities and things available at the mansion that he just couldn't get at his apartment. His father was right. As much as he had resisted moving back home, he knew that it was the sensible thing to do now.

"I'll do that," he answered softly.

His father nodded. "I'll have your things brought to the house so that everything will be there when we get home."

"Okay."

His father gently clapped a hand on his shoulder, before leaving him in the room. He thought of the ring he had seen a while back that he had thought would have been perfect for Jen. He thought of all the plans he had briefly made—they could get married in Vegas and go on a honeymoon somewhere exotic (he had been planning on conning his father into making that a wedding present) and then they could live in Silver Hills in his apartment. All of it seemed dead now.

Now, only time would tell what the future would bring. 

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Aw! The reviews from the last chapter were so sweet! I love you guys bunches! And for anyone expressing regret during the last update about there being only one more chapter, be happy! There is one more chapter. It's more of an epilogue than anything else, but those of you interested in the TF issues would do well to stick around. (Plus they all get drunk... a must see!) Thanks for all the great reviews! --EK 


	28. All the Battles Are Won

**Disclaimer:** 'Power Rangers' (all incarnations) are property of 'Saban', who are in some strange way related to Disney, who run the show on ABC. No infringement is intended.

**ROARING ON THE WIND**

By Etcetera Kit

**Chapter Twenty-Eight: All the Battles Are Won**

-One Year Later-

Tommy sat in the narthex of the local church with Billy, awaiting the arrival of everyone who had been invited to the wedding. Billy and Kim's wedding could have been a joint wedding with some of the others—the wedding invitations were going around like wildfire—but the others had purposely planned their weddings for later, since they knew the situation between Billy and Kim. Kim was six months pregnant and they would have married sooner but they wanted everyone to be able to make it, so the wedding got pushed back later and later.

"There he is! The mad genius that is spawning more mad geniuses!"

Jason threw open the doors to the narthex, making his entrance especially grand. Kim and Billy had told everyone that this was going to be a ranger wedding—and everyone should wear their colors. Jason had complied with that request by wearing a conventional black suit with a bright red Hawaiian shirt underneath. He also had a Santa tie to go with it.

"Think I'm wearing enough red?" he asked, approaching them.

Tommy and Billy exchanged glances and burst into laughter. He certainly was wearing a lot of red. "I think so," Tommy replied. He had managed to get a decent black suit with a white vest and collarless shirt, an ode to his days in white.

"Well," Jason said. "You're the ones who insisted I wear red. You do realize that I burned most of my red clothing when I stopped being an active ranger?"

"As did we all," Tommy replied.

"I had a lot of blue polo shirts that Chris stole," Billy added, referring to Tommy's roommate from undergraduate school. Billy had managed his two colors by wearing a forest green vest and matching tie with blue cufflinks.

"I have just one thing to say to you, William Cranston," Jason said with a false menacing glare. "Birth control…" he drew out the last syllable.

"That's two things," Tommy told him.

"Whoops," Billy replied with a shrug.

Jason laughed and pulled up a folding chair next to them. "So who all are we waiting for?" he asked. "Besides all the rest of the distress signal reds and their significant others and children?"

"Kira, Trent, Ethan, Adam, Hayley…" Tommy ticked off the list.

"So you're the best man, who's the bridesmaid?"

"Kira," Billy replied.

Just as if it were a stroke of fate, Kira pushed open the doors to the narthex, already wearing her pale yellow bridesmaid's dress. Her hair had obviously been done at a local hairdresser's because it was piled on her head in soft curls and studded with small, silk yellow flowers. "Hey guys," she said shortly. "Where's Kim?"

"Down the hall in the library," Tommy said, pointing.

"Cool," she replied. "Conner is finding a place to park his car and him and Ethan and Trent should be in here in a moment." She headed off down the hallway. The next group to enter had to have arrived the same time as the kids. Cole and Alyssa walked in followed by Eric and Taylor and the three Dino Thunder male teens. Cole did not look comfortable in his suit and red tie, as he kept tugging at it and Alyssa kept swatting his hand away. Alyssa on the other hand, looked perfectly comfortable in her white dress. Eric was wearing a navy blue suit with a pin-striped tie (the pin strips were red) while Taylor was in a pale yellow blouse and black skirt. Tommy had to admit, it was strange seeing all of these people dressed up. Ironically enough, Cole and Alyssa were the next wedding with Eric and Taylor following them. (Merrick had e-mailed after the latter announcement and said he gave them six months before a divorce.)

"Hi, Doctor O!" Conner said cheerily. Tommy noticed that his mother had obviously forced him into a suit, but Conner had rebelled and worn sneakers.

"Ditto," Ethan added. "We need to get this show on the road. I'm ready to party!"

"I think the ceremony's a little more important than the reception," Trent reminded them as he turned to Tommy. "My dad will be here later. He's got some business to take care of."

Conner and Ethan exchanged glances that clearly said, 'what could be more important than a party?'

"No underage drinking," Billy told them.

"Oh come on, Dr. Cranston," Conner wheedled. "Just one?"

"No!" Billy said with more emphasis. "You're driving after all."

Conner paused and thought. "Good point."

"Go in there and do something useful!" Billy said, pointing to the sanctuary.

"Like what?" Conner asked.

"I don't know. Just go in there!"

Conner signed dramatically. "All right." He and Ethan and Trent walked into the sanctuary where they could be heard talking loudly about God knows what.

Tommy smiled. Everyone had changed so much in the year since they had defeated Mesogog. Conner, Ethan, Kira and Trent were starting their senior year at Reefside High School and, in the spring, they would graduate. All four of them were starting to settle down and think about what they wanted to do. Conner had received a full ride to UCLA on a soccer scholarship, assuming that he kept his GPA up during his senior year. That seemed to have gotten him in gear, because Ethan and Kira reported seeing him study more than ever. Ethan had gotten a full ride to MIT where he wanted to major in computer science. (Which, as Conner put it, was a big surprise.) Kira had found a small college in New Mexico where she could major in contemporary music and was awaiting a response from them. Trent, much to the chagrin of his father who eventually understood, was taking a year off after graduation to work at full-time for Hayley and then he might think about art college.

The kids were growing up and no one knew how it happened. Mary Anne, due to the fact that she had skipped a grade somewhere long the line, was a junior in high school even though she was only fifteen. Susie was now in fourth grade. The sisters seemed to have adjusted well to the fact that they were getting a stepmother and new little sister. (And they never referred to their unborn sister as their half-sister. She was their sister.) And Billy would truly go to living in the estrogen ocean (which had been bad enough before, but was now doubling.)

Kendrix had found out that her baby was a girl, not because she wanted to, but because of the ultrasounds she had had during her pregnancy to make sure that Mesogog had not done anything to her or the baby. Three months ago, she had given birth to a healthy little girl. Leo appeared to have adjusted really well to being a father, naming Carter the girl's godfather. They had ended up naming the baby Merry, because the girl, when she was born, instead of crying, had giggled.

Andros and Ashley went back to Angel Grove and were reunited with their firstborn who was thrilled about his new little sister. Cole's nicknaming the baby 'Kaye' had stuck and now, the year-old girl was referred to by that. It suited the couple just fine because she wouldn't get confused with her aunt now. The rumor among the ranks was that they wanted more children and no one had a definite number on where they planned to stop. For some reason, Tommy would never have imagined Andros with a large family, but it was happening.

Carter had recovered and gone home to Mariner Bay a few weeks later. Dana, by virtue of the fact that she was a doctor, had inspected and looked over his recovery in case the other doctors made a mistake. Cory was now four and had started preschool and Heather was two and a half. Their parents were back to their normal jobs as a firefighter and pediatrician. The only noticeable scar on Carter was the slight limp that he now had.

Adam, Jason and TJ had gone back to their normal lives in Angel Grove and Galveston respectively. (Jason still crushed beer cans on his forehead.) Eric and Cole had both gone home, but romances had blossomed for both of them. Apparently, Taylor, who was in the Air Force, had managed to get stationed at Silver Hills to be closer to Eric and they had decided to get married shortly after. (And Merrick found that laughable—which Tommy couldn't blame him on a certain level.) Cole had gone back to Turtle Cove and back to college to become a veterinarian. Alyssa was a kindergarten teacher and, shortly before Eric and Taylor, had announced that they were getting married in the winter.

He and Billy had resolved the teaching issue. He had taken over for the science classes once more and Billy had stayed on the staff to replace a math teacher who wanted to retire. The new principal turned out to be infinitely better than Principal Randall. Hayley was still running her cybercafé and Merrick was still working at that bar in Turtle Cove, after he had returned the Wild Zords to Princess Shayla.

All in all, life was back to normal for all of them… except Wes. No one had heard from him in the year since Jen had gone into a coma. According to Eric, he was drowning in his depression and his father had to make him go to work every day, but his heart just wasn't in it. It was like the man was wandering through the world, looking for a lost piece of himself and he hadn't found it. Even still, Wes had promised to be present at the wedding.

"It's our bartender!"

Tommy snapped out of his reverie as Merrick came into the narthex, wearing black slacks and a dusty blue dress shirt. Merrick gave Eric (who could be credited with the outburst) a small bow. Kim and Billy, rather than hire a bartender, had asked Merrick if he would do the honors. He had agreed.

"Hello to all of you," Merrick said wryly.

"Come on people!" Kira called to the crowd in the narthex. "Let's get this show on the road!"

Tommy nodded as the crowd dispersed. He remembered when he was young and he had imagined his and Kim's wedding. If one had told him then that Kim was going to marry Billy, he would have laughed. But it was right and everyone knew it.

* * *

Andros sat with his arm around Ashley as all the kids ran wild on the dance floor. Or more, all the kids that could walk ran wild on the dance floor. The reception was going pretty well for the relatively small number of people who came. Merrick was manning the bar and apparently doing a fairly good job, because Conner had said that Jason and Tommy were going to get Billy wasted by the end of evening. It appeared to be working, because Kimberly found Billy's state pretty amusing. (Mary Anne and Susie had ducked out of the reception early along with Billy's father because the three of them were leaving for a weekend camping trip in the morning.)

"I always thought it'd be frightening if that bunch got drunk together," Ashley whispered as she snuggled closer to him.

"Here's the proof," Andros replied, stealing a kiss from her. His kids happened to be present, but why Kim and Billy wanted all these kids at their wedding was beyond him. He smiled as Kim's mother rounded up all the remaining kids—Brian, Kaye, Cory and Heather—and shooed them out towards a playroom set up elsewhere in the building. Merry was so little that she had been with her parents, until Mrs. Dumas offered to take her for a while. That was probably so Leo could join the others in getting completely smashed. The man didn't appear like he could, in good conscious, get drunk while his wife and daughter were present.

Andros found it slightly amusing how Billy and Kim's parents took all of this in stride, helping with the kids and whatnot. He remembered back to when he and Ashley got back to Angel Grove and announced that they were getting married. Ashley's parents had been downright hostile to him until someone truly impressed on them that he was from KO 35 and not being dumb on purpose. Her parents had gotten even weirder when it came to light that he was taking her last name, since he didn't have one. They finally settled down once they had been married a while and Brian was born.

"Andros!" someone yelled from the bar. "You need to get over here!"

"What are they doing?" he whispered to Ashley.

"I don't know," she replied, pressing a kiss to his ear. "But you'd better get down there before they drag you down there. Besides, one shot won't kill you."

He begged to differ with her. His experience on Earth with hard liquor had not been positive. He was all right with beer, but anything harder… It wasn't pretty. But he planted a lingering kiss on her lips anyways and headed towards the bar. The only person there who wasn't completely drunk was Merrick. He grinned and handed Andros one of the shots of Schnapps that they were drinking. "It doesn't taste like alcohol," Merrick said in an undertone.

Andros rolled his eyes and glanced around at the people at the bar. It was all ten of the former red rangers with Billy. He looked around and realized that Cole and Conner were not drunk either, they were just caught up in the spirit of the party. Wes didn't look drunk either, but that could just be because he held his liquor well.

"All right people," Jason said, slurring his words together ever so slightly. "Everyone give the groom a piece of advice and then we drink!"

There was a rousing agreement to that. Jason started the advice. "Don't go to bed angry at each other," he said, sounding rather serious despite his inebriated state.

"Some of the best blessings are unanswered prayers," Tommy continued. Andros knew where that came from and smiled slightly.

"Dreams can come true, if you're willing to work hard enough," TJ added.

Andros thought for a moment, realizing it was his turn. "Kids are your biggest blessing and your worst curse."

"Every moment you spend dwelling on the past is a moment you take away from the future," Leo intoned.

"Think with your head. Feel with your heart," Carter said.

"There is a fine line between coincidence and fate," Wes added to the line, looking like he wanted to believe it, but couldn't quite pull it off.

"Work as hard as you play," Eric said boisterously.

"Follow your heart and end with a song!" Cole proclaimed.

"Live noble dreams, now and always," Conner ended the round of 'advice.'

Jason made an incoherent noise and raised his glass. The others followed suit and they all threw back the shots. Andros winced at first, but then realized that the thing tasted like watermelon. Hmmm… this might be the way to get smashed. He took the glass that was offered to him as Merrick poured them another round.

* * *

Cole snuggled close to Alyssa in their hotel room some hours later. He had not had nearly as much to drink as the others, but what he had had was enough to put him in a warm, fuzzy state and that made him generally happy and content. The amusing thing was that after Tommy and Jason succeeded in their goal of getting Billy wasted, they changed their target to Andros and achieved it through a bottle of watermelon Schnapps. Ashley had actually been laughing, finding it really funny to see Andros properly drunk for once in his life.

"Hmmm…" he murmured into her hair. "That was fun."

She laughed and gently leaned back so she could smooth his hair back. "You're drunk," she said gently. "But you get to do this again at Christmas and again on Valentine's Day."

"Yeah," he replied. "The only difference is they'll be targeting me at Christmas."

He thought briefly to the fact that Eric and Taylor had planned their wedding for Valentine's Day. It struck him as odd since neither one of them was particularly romantic in any way, shape or form. Why pick the most romantic day of the year to have their wedding? Perhaps Merrick's prediction would prove right. Maybe those two would be divorced within six months. Then again, Cole could see them as the types who would keep getting divorced and remarried. That would be amusing.

"So," Alyssa said, propping herself up on one elbow. "Are we going to have kids or are we just going to have lots of animals?"

"Eh?" he asked. "Kids," he said definitely.

She laughed. "And you're not going to bring in homeless renegade animals just because you feel sorry for them?"

"I never said that," he replied. "Besides, I've had experience with kids."

Alyssa laughed as he brought up his intensive with Kaye. That little girl had grown attached to him as had most of the children of the rangers. He had yet to puzzle that out. Maybe it was because he had no problem playing little kid games with them like 'Candy Land' and 'Chutes and Ladders.' Hell, he enjoyed those kind of games. They were easy and fun and there was no way to figure out who would win or no strategy to win.

"So what do you want to name our kids?" she asked, planting a kiss on his cheek.

He thought for a moment, slightly distracted by the other things that that kiss suggested other than talking about baby names. "Alexander," he said finally.

She laughed again. "Now I know you're drunk. You'd never suggest such a stuffy name for a baby if you were sober."

He just gave her a lopsided grin and pulled her close. He remembered how a year ago they had been so close to breaking up and he had been prepared to let her go, not wanting her to remain in a relationship she didn't want to. Maybe that random phone call he felt compelled to do had been the turning point in their relationship.

"Wait! I know what we can name the kid!" he exclaimed.

"Hmmm…?" Alyssa asked, planting kisses down his ear to his neck.

He tried to ignore her distracting kisses. "Wesley," he said. "And if it's a girl, we can name it Jennifer."

Alyssa looked up at him. "I like it," she said.

He laughed and tackled her underneath him. The future seemed bright and there was nothing in the entire world that was going to change that.

* * *

Wes walked into the mansion late that night. Rather than stay in Reefside for a few days, he had flown out that morning and left that evening. He didn't really want to be around all of them. Their lives were perfect, going just the way all of them wanted. His wasn't. He didn't know how to get out of the pit he had dug himself into. He had even been avoiding Eric, since he and Taylor had officially defined their relationship. He was happy for them, but he felt like he couldn't partake in that happiness. It had been a year…

He walked upstairs and dropped his bags in his old room. The room had hardly changed at all, still housing trophies from high school track events. In a way, it was a bit depressing, but reassuring all at once.

"You're home already?"

He turned to see his father standing in the doorway to his room. He was wearing a bathrobe and slippers. Nodding, his father's face turned to concerned.

"I hadn't expected you until tomorrow at least." He crossed the room and laid his hands on his son's shoulders. "I'm worried about you. You used to do things with your friends, but now you've turned into a recluse."

Wes knew that his father meant well, but shrugged his hands away anyways. "My fiancée is lying not ten feet from this room in a coma!" he yelled. He hadn't meant to yell, but did anyways. "Of course I've changed!"

His father nodded and left the room, looking sad. Wes turned his back on the door and slammed his fist into his mattress. He hated what his life had become, what he had become. He just wanted Jen to wake up and everything would be perfect. Sinking to his knees by his bed, he furiously wiped at forming tears. No… he had shed too many tears in the past year. There was nothing left to cry about.

Resolve steeled, he got up and walked into the next room—Jen's room. She was still as always. A physical therapist came in several times a week to massage her muscles so they wouldn't atrophy, but she still had the look of the living dead. He crossed the room and knelt beside her bed, gently taking her hand.

"I'm back, Jen," he said softly. "I told you I wouldn't leave for long." He paused. "It was Kim and Billy's wedding. You would have enjoyed it."

He stopped himself. She couldn't hear him. He stood up and placed a kiss on her pale forehead. "Good night, Jen," he said softly. He turned and crossed the room once more, pausing at the door. He turned back. Her eyelids were fluttering. He sighed. How many times in the early days had he assumed that she would wake up? It was just a reflex. He turned around.

"Wes?"

He turned back once more. And what he saw made his heart soar all the way to the clouds and back again.

* * *

_Year 3005_

_The green-haired young man scanned through the files on the Time Force database. They had to keep detailed history records, some of which existed in another dimension so that they had proof when the timeline was shifting. With people jumping all over time, it was difficult to tell what was meant to be and what people changed. He started a file search._

_"Computer," he said in a soft voice. "Look up Jennifer Elizabeth Scotts and also look under the name Jennifer Elizabeth Collins. Nickname Jen."_

_The computer hummed softly as it brought up the various files that it had been asked to. The young man studied them closely, smiling at what he saw. She hadn't changed the timeline at all. In fact, she was supposed to go back to the year 2004 illicitly. If she hadn't, then most of Bio-Lab and the Silver Guardians would have discontinued with Alan Collins' death. Once she had gone back and married Wes, he took an interest once more in the company, apart from the Silver Guardians. Their daughter, one Faith Collins, would take over from her father and turn the company into what would eventually become Time Force._

_It wasn't a crime. It was destiny._

_"Anything?"_

_The young man turned to see Captain Logan coming into the room. "Yes sir. She was supposed to go back to the year 2004."_

_"Interesting. I guess I won't be sending you, Kendall and Walker back to get her."_

_"Guess not, sir."_

_"Good work, Regis. Let's just wish her luck." He left the room._

_Trip looked back to the computer. He knew that Jen would make it and do what was needed in order for the future to remain the same. The fine line between coincidence and fate had not been crossed. It was her destiny._

The End

* * *

**Author's Note:** This had been a wild ride from the beginning! I guess this is kind of like the end credits so to speak. First and foremost, I would like to give credit where credit is due. Special thanks to Andrew who helped come up with the idea for the new Dino-Gems, the people to get the new gems, the Dragon-Zord and all that jazz. The original idea for this story was completely different from what it ended up as. Go figure! But thanks Andrew-- he gets a royalty check. As I hand him a piece of Bazooka bubblegum...

Next, thanks to everyone who has reviewed this story, especially those of you who have volunteered information and advice about the characters and incarnations I am not as familiar with. This list includes: takes a deep breath BrandonB, bric, Cantoris, , Cat Yuy, Charles RocketBoy, cmar, darkchylde, Eaglesong, Ehani, Ethan Seale, Felicia Angel, Feline-Feral, fen, Funky In Fishnet, Ghostwriter, Giannola, Gina, hartfelt, Helvetebrann, Jason Barnett, jenny, Jig, jim hawking jr, Jonathan Lee, kakwat, Katalia, KimberFlames, Lelen, Manders1953, Mari, Merry, , Ms Birdman, PhantomZeo, Philip, Pinkie, Plumed Serpent, PRTFLO, Ranger Fan, Ranger Lover, rembrandt, Reno Sands, rouge195, Ryan T. Morris, Satori Blackthorn, sayinjinj7, Sean, SilverRider, silver-sugar, Silver Warrior, StarBurst (Jepoliant), Starlight63, StarryEyed, Super ZEO Silver, the-power-of-love, Titanium Gold, Warstock-Leonhart, white time ranger, William Raymer and Zeo Star 5. If I missed you, feel free to e-mail me and berate me for negligence. (And yes, even the anonymous charmer who flamed the very first chapter gets some thanks! I had some tasty s'mores after that.)

Special thanks to ABC Family for running that lovely 'Strength In Numbers' marathon when I was in the middle of writing this. They must have got my telepathic message that I needed to see Time Force/Wild Force episodes.

All the research that went into this fic can be attributed to Rovang's Guide to the Power Rangers' Universe (thanks to cmar for tuning me into that one) and TV Tome (where I read endless episode summaries trying to get a feel for characters.)

I've got a couple different projects in mind for upcoming PR fics-- some include more of the red ranger gang that everyone got to know so well during this story and some branch off in other directions. I also recently had a revelation about Ninja Storm. I don't like that particular incarnation of Power Rangers at all and for a long time I wondered why (since other incarnations really were worse.) With that said, I have had to force myself to develop an appreciation for it, much in the way I had to make myself develop an appreciation for Lightspeed Rescue. So any future fics will also include the NS rangers to the best of my ability.

So cheers, happy writing and I shall see all of you around the site! --EK


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